Department for Transport

High Speed 2 Railway Line

Jon Trickett: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether his Department is taking steps to (a) restructure and (b) reassess the viability of the High Speed Two project as a result of the Infrastructure and Projects Authority issuing a red Delivery Confidence Assessment rating in its Annual Report on Major Projects 2019-20.

Andrew Stephenson: The IPA’s report refers to the status of the HS2 project in September 2019. This was before the project was comprehensively reset in February 2020 with a revised budget and schedule, and provision of adequate contingency. Steps have also been taken to ensure the project is delivered in a more disciplined and transparent manner with, for example, a dedicated HS2 Minister appointed and bi-annual updates to be provided to Parliament. In line with the findings of the Oakervee Review, published in February 2020, we will also be creating new delivery arrangements for Euston, and have committed to drawing up an Integrated Rail Plan for the Midlands and the North by the end of this year.

Cycling and Walking

Ruth Cadbury: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how many and what proportion of his Department's staff work primarily on policy in relation to cycling and walking.

Chris Heaton-Harris: The Government is committed to delivering the aims and ambitions set out in the Cycling and Walking Investment Strategy, which was published in April 2017. This includes ensuring that there are appropriate staff resources in place to deliver the Strategy, as well as the new commitments on active travel that have been announced recently. Around twenty officials in the Department for Transport now work on cycling and walking issues, and this will be kept under review.

Cycleways

Ruth Cadbury: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether his Department has made an assessment of the adequacy of the 500 miles of Dutch-inspired kerb-protected cycleways designed and paid for by the Ministry of Transport between 1934 and 1941; and whether he plans to upgrade those cycleways to comply with modern standards.

Chris Heaton-Harris: The Department has made no assessment of the adequacy of the protected cycleways designed and built between 1934 and 1941. Local Authorities are responsible for assessing and identifying investment priorities for local transport infrastructure, including for cycling and walking. The Government intends to publish the updated version of the Department’s cycle infrastructure design guidance imminently.On the 9th May the Government announced a £2 billion package of funding for cycling and walking over the next five years. £225 million will be available to local authorities this financial year. for immediate measures including new cycle lanes, wider pavements and safer junctions. Decisions on the remainder will be for the Spending Review in due course.

Motor Vehicles: USA

Mr Barry Sheerman: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment he has made of the suitability of US (a) SUVs and (b) other larger vehicles for driving on UK roads in relation to a future free trade agreement with that country.

Andrew Stephenson: The Department for Transport has considered the differences between USA and UK technical standards across all vehicle types. In some areas the safety outcomes are broadly similar but there are also some important differences that would need to be considered, for example, the standards applicable to protecting pedestrians involved in collisions. The British Government will decide how we establish and maintain our own standards and regulations, and no standards will be diminished as part of a Free Trade Agreement with the USA.

High Speed 2 Railway Line: Golborne

Charlotte Nichols: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what progress he has made on reviewing the merits of the inclusion of the Golborne Spur section in phase 2b of High Speed Two project.

Andrew Stephenson: The Government has committed to developing an Integrated Rail Plan (IRP) which will look at how to deliver Phase 2b of HS2, Northern Powerhouse Rail and other Network Rail programmes better and more effectively, ensuring the benefits are brought to the North and Midlands as quickly and efficiently as possible.The Golborne Link is part of the current plans for the western leg of Phase 2b of HS2.The Golborne Link is being considered as part of the IRP, which will assess the Link’s benefits, costs and the best way to serve the North West of England and Scotland.We expect the findings of the IRP to be published by the end of this year. Should any design changes be proposed, they will be subject to future consultation.

Aviation: Coronavirus

Ms Lyn Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if he will make an assessment of the potential merits for (a) reducing the risk of covid-19 transmission and (b) consumer welfare of mandating that airlines seat groups of people who are travelling together are seated closely together during the covid-19 pandemic.

Kelly Tolhurst: The Government has published guidance specifically for both aviation operators and for air passengers on safer travel during the COVID-19 pandemic. This operator guidance maps out the measures airlines can take to protect passengers and staff on board aircraft, and includes advice on hygiene measures, face coverings, and social distancing in the aircraft setting. On the specific issue of seating passengers travelling in a group together, the guidance states ‘where possible and where mass and balance allow, enable social distancing among passengers of different households or support bubbles, where relevant.’ The Government expects all airlines to manage the risks of coronavirus as far as possible in order to provide safer workplaces and services for workers and passengers. For further information, the operator guidance is available to view at the following link: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/coronavirus-covid-19-safer-aviation-guidance-for-operators

Railways: Coronavirus

Chi Onwurah: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what estimate he has made of the losses incurred by rail-card holders who have not had access to (a) rail services and (b) compensation available for loss of service during the covid-19 outbreak.

Chris Heaton-Harris: Railcards are sold and managed by the Rail Delivery Group on behalf of the rail industry. While no specific assessment has been made of the losses incurred by Railcard holders, many customers can make back their initial investment with the savings resulting from a single journey, or a small number of rail journeys. Proposals for amendments to existing Railcard policies are for the Rail Delivery Group to bring forward. The Rail Delivery Group is working with train companies on a number of ways to assist Railcard holders, in light of the current COVID-19 related travel restrictions. Departmental officials have been engaging regularly with the Rail Delivery Group as they consider possible changes to Railcard conditions.

Large Goods Vehicles: EU Countries

Gavin Newlands: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what plans his Department has made for the UK's continued participation in the European Conference of Ministers of Transport's haulage permit scheme after the end of the transition period.

Andrew Stephenson: The UK Government will remain a member of the European Conference of Ministers for Transport (ECMT) regime after the transition period as it is a multilateral agreement independent of the European Union.

Public Transport: Coronavirus

Sir David Evennett: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, with reference to covid-19 lockdown restrictions, what recent assessment he has made of the level of compliance of people wearing face coverings on public transport.

Chris Heaton-Harris: Regular reports from Network Rail and the train operating companies continue to suggest high rates of compliance. The Office for National Statistics weekly survey which tracks the proportion of people declaring they use a face covering on public transport also suggests high levels of compliance with the regulation. Latest data (collected 8-12 July) shows 82% of public transport users in England used a face covering - a significant increase in compliance from 57% in the first week of June. Not all people can wear or are required to wear a face covering and so we would not expect compliance rates to be 100%. We have implemented a significant communications campaign, and have been working with transport operators on raising public awareness and encouraging all groups of passengers to comply with the requirement to wear a face covering. We are aware of lower levels of compliance in some areas and are working with local transport authorities to understand and tackle the reasons for such variance. British Transport Police, Transport for London enforcement officers and local police forces are working hard to encourage compliance and, where necessary have been fining passengers who fail to comply.

Members: Correspondence

Rosie Cooper: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, when he plans to reply to the correspondence of 21 May 2020 from the hon. Member for West Lancashire on the Burscough Curves.

Chris Heaton-Harris: A response to your correspondence of 21 May was sent via email on 3rd July. Unfortunately, due to an administrative error, an incorrect date was quoted on that letter for which I apologise. A revised copy of that letter with the correct date can be found in the attached document. 



Letter response - Burscough Curves 
(Word Document, 100.9 KB)

Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy

Fuel Cells: Research

Chi Onwurah: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what steps he is taking to support investment in research and development in fuel cell manufacturing technology in the UK.

Nadhim Zahawi: The UK is well placed to realise the opportunities from hydrogen and fuel cells thanks to our high-quality engineering and manufacturing capability in relevant supply chains. We are working in partnership with industry to develop our strategic approach to hydrogen and related policy, including business models to support investment. Through Innovate UK, the Office for Low Emission Vehicles and the Advanced Propulsion Centre (APC), we have supported several fuel cell trial and innovation projects to build UK expertise. The APC has provided more than £35 million in grants to projects undertaking research and development to accelerate the commercialisation of fuel cells in automotive applications.

Agency Workers

Luke Pollard: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what plans he has to expand the powers of the Employment Agency Standards Inspectorate to include workers employed by umbrella bodies in enforcing the provisions of the Employment Agencies Act 1973.

Paul Scully: We have already made significant progress in improving the rights of agency workers, in particular by increasing the information they receive about pay rates, including when they are employed by umbrella companies. The Government has committed to expand the remit of the Employment Agency Standards Inspectorate to include umbrella companies. In the Queen’s Speech we announced our intention to bring forward an Employment Bill. We will bring forward detailed proposals on future legislation in due course.

Research: Finance

Chi Onwurah: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, pursuant to the Answer of 13 July 2020 to Question 71047 on Research: Finance, how much of that funding will be funded through the £1 billion announced in Budget 2020.

Amanda Solloway: Of the £100m for Direct Air Capture and carbon removal technologies, £70m will be allocated and delivered from the £1 billion BEIS Energy Innovation Programme as announced in the Budget in 2020. A further £31.5m will be spent through the UKRI Strategic Priorities Fund: Greenhouse Gas Removal Demonstrators (GGR-D).

Postgraduate Education: Equality

Chi Onwurah: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, pursuant to the Answer of 29 June 2020 to Question 64183, what steps the (a) Government and (b) UKRI are taking to encourage diversity in UKRI funded PhD studentships.

Amanda Solloway: The Government is committed to developing a strong, diverse academic workforce. As part of our recently published R&D roadmap, we will be working with stakeholders on a new R&D people and culture strategy. This strategy will examine how we can better attract diverse talent into research and enhance UK research culture. In addition, UKRI are supporting and promoting diversity of PhD students through a number of initiatives:Research England and the Office for Students are funding a competition to reduce inequalities in postgraduate research study to launch in Autumn 2020.Research England and Office for Students’ Catalyst fund (£1.5 million) will improve support for mental health and wellbeing for postgraduate researchers.The Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council’s £5.5 million inclusion matters call will fund projects on equality, diversity and inclusion with projects looking at recruitment strategies and practices.

Foreign and Commonwealth Office

Foreign and Commonwealth Office: Apprentices

Robert Halfon: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what steps his Department is taking to reach the public sector apprenticeship target.

Nigel Adams: Since 2016, we and our Executive Agency, Foreign and Commonwealth Office Services, have held annual external apprenticeship recruitment campaigns enrolling new entrants and existing staff, onto a range of programmes from level 2 to level 7 (post-degree). Our current apprenticeships include business administration, human resources and finance and accounting. In 2019, we opened our level 3 business administration programme to non-graduates only, to broaden opportunities to join our department.

China: Human Rights

David Linden: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent representations he has made to his Chinese counterpart on the (a) detention, (b) harassment and (c) torture of human rights lawyers in that country.

Nigel Adams: We remain concerned by restrictions on freedom of expression in China, and urge the authorities to immediately release human rights lawyers detained for the peaceful and constitutionally protected expression of their views.We have raised Gao Zhisheng's case directly with the Chinese Government. We called for his release, and urged the Chinese authorities to ensure he is not subjected to harassment, mistreatment or discrimination.

Gao Zhisheng

David Linden: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent representations he has made to his Chinese counterpart on the whereabouts of human rights lawyer Gao Zhisheng.

Nigel Adams: We remain concerned by restrictions on freedom of expression in China, and urge the authorities to immediately release human rights lawyers detained for the peaceful and constitutionally protected expression of their views.We have raised Gao Zhisheng's case directly with the Chinese Government. We called for his release, and urged the Chinese authorities to ensure he is not subjected to harassment, mistreatment or discrimination.

China: Iran

Dr Matthew Offord: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what assessment he has made of the implications for his policies on regional stability of reports that Iran has signed a 25-year strategic agreement with China.

James Cleverly: The reports in the press that Iran and China have agreed a 25-year strategic agreement are premature. Iranian authorities, including Foreign Minister Zarif, have stated publicly that any agreement between the two countries has yet to be finalised and that negotiations are still ongoing. Details of the potential agreement are still emerging, and it is too early to make an assessment of any possible effects on wider regional stability.

Iran: Nuclear Power

Dr Matthew Offord: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what assessment he has made of Iran’s current level of compliance with the 2015 Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action.

James Cleverly: The Foreign Secretary made clear in his statement with France and Germany on 19 June that Iran's reductions in compliance with the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPoA) raise serious proliferation concerns. The UK, with France and Germany, triggered the JCPoA's Dispute Resolution Mechanism (DRM) on 14 January to try to resolve these concerns. Iran must engage constructively with that DRM process and implement its commitments under the deal. We remain committed to working with all JCPoA parties, including Iran, to find a diplomatic way forward.

British Overseas Territories: Climate Change

Derek Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what support his Department has given the UK Overseas Territories in the Caribbean to ensure that future built developments incorporate climate resilience.

Derek Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what support he is providing to ensure climate adaptation plans are adopted and implemented in the UK Overseas Territories in the Caribbean.

Wendy Morton: Following the destruction caused by hurricanes in 2017, the UK Government has funded construction work in several Overseas Territories (OTs), with a focus on building back with improved hurricane and seismic resilience. In Montserrat, the UK is investing in resilient infrastructure through the Capital Infrastructure Programme for Resilient and Economic Growth (CIPREG), including projects such as the recently laid fibre optic cable link that will bolster Montserrat's resilience against extreme weather. Additionally, with funding from the cross-Government Conflict, Stability and Security Fund, the Joint Nature Conservation Committee (JNCC) has supported OTs in the Caribbean to build response and resilience models to hurricane related flood risks. This includes opportunities to maximise the role and value of the natural environment, including coastal vegetation, mangroves and coral reefs, to minimise flood damage, and the use of vulnerability mapping to inform on-island planning processes for new infrastructure and residential developments. The JNCC is also working with individual OTs to develop monitoring programmes capable of recognising changes to their marine and terrestrial environments, including those related to climate change.Through the UK Government funded Darwin and Darwin Plus Initiatives, the UK continues to support the ability of the OTs to increase their resilience and ability to adapt in the face of climate change by funding individual projects, such as efforts to improve coastal ecosystem resilience in Anguilla and restoration of mangroves in the British Virgin Islands.

Department of Health and Social Care

Coronavirus: Tyne and Wear

Chi Onwurah: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many testing kits have been sent to the Queen Elizabeth hospital Gateshead testing labs in each of the last eight weeks; and what proportion of tests from the Tyne and Wear area are processed in those labs.

Ms Nadine Dorries: Holding answer received on 02 June 2020



Between 13 April 2020 and 1 June 2020 17,503 tests were allocated to Queen Elizabeth Hospital Gateshead testing labs. We do not hold information in relation to the proportion of testing for the Tyne and Wear area carried out at Queen Elizabeth Hospital Gateshead testing lab.

Coronavirus: Screening

Rosie Cooper: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what proportion of covid-19 tests are void, unclear, spoiled or lost (a) by region and (b) in total.

Ms Nadine Dorries: Holding answer received on 08 June 2020



We do not currently publish figures on the proportion of tests that are void, unclear, spoiled or lost. We are working with officials in the testing programme to validate the data and to present it in a form that is suitable for publication.

Coronavirus: Screening

Alberto Costa: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to ensure that people without photographic ID are able to receive a test for the covid-19 at designated testing centres.

Ms Nadine Dorries: Those attending in person testing sites are asked to show photographic ID. However, if they do not have photographic ID, site operators have been instructed to follow manual registration processes to ensure no one is turned away.

Contact Tracing: Computer Software

Dawn Butler: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will publish the minutes of meetings held between officials in his Department with representatives from (a) Apple and (b) Google on the development of a covid-19 app.

Ms Nadine Dorries: We have worked closely with Apple and Google and will continue to do so as we continue to develop an app which uses their exposure notification framework. Departmental officials have had meetings with Apple and Google from late March 2020. These discussions relate to the development of current Government policy and therefore we have no plans to publish the minutes.

Coronavirus: Aviation and Theatre

Greg Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what plans he has to introduce immunity passports as a means of allowing the public to safely (a) take flights and (b) attend the theatre.

Ms Nadine Dorries: COVID-19 is a new disease and the science around ‘immunity’ remains uncertain – we do not know, for example, how long an antibody response to the COVID-19 virus lasts or whether having antibodies means one does not transmit the virus to others.Before considering whether antibody testing and certification could ever be used to enable specific individuals to be exempted from social distancing restrictions and/or self-isolation measures, we first need to improve our understanding of how the immune system responds to COVID-19.To gain answers to these critical questions on immunity, the United Kingdom Government has been working closely with the Office for National Statistics, Biobank, universities and other partners to establish a series of studies that will help us learn more about the prevalence and spread of the virus, as well as the nature and duration of the immune response.

Contact Tracing: Computer Software

Justin Madders: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many contacts were traced by the NHS covid-19 contact tracing app during the trial of that app on the Isle of Wight.

Ms Nadine Dorries: Holding answer received on 09 July 2020



Over 50,000 people on the Isle of Wight downloaded and activated the app. Out of this number, on 18 June, 1,765 people had been notified that they had been in close contact with someone who had symptoms.

LGBT People: Coronavirus

Florence Eshalomi: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to make an assessment of the effect of the covid-19 outbreak on the mental health of (a) LGBT people who are Black, Asian and minority ethnic, (b) other LGBT people with multiple protected characteristics and (c) the rest of the LGBT community.

Ms Nadine Dorries: Holding answer received on 13 July 2020



Monitoring and tracking the impact of COVID-19 on people's mental health is a key part of the overall national response to the pandemic. We recognise the disproportionate impacts that have been experienced by some groups during this time.The Government Equalities Office is engaging with other Government departments and the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) sector to understand how we can best support the LGBT population at this time and as we move into recovery.

Patients: Monitoring

Robert Halfon: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what discussions he has had with his Israeli counterpart on a resolution to the remote monitoring of patients developed in Israel.

Ms Nadine Dorries: Holding answer received on 13 July 2020



My Rt. hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care has not had any discussions with his Israeli counterparts on their approach to remote monitoring of patients. The Department and NHSX engages with its international counterparts on a wide range of issues, including those relating to COVID-19. As a Department, we are open to learn from innovations in any country round the world and within and outside of COVID-19.

Babies: Streptococcus

Steve Brine: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many babies aged 0-3 months died from group B Strep infection in 2019; and how many of those babies were BAME.

Steve Brine: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what proportion of babies aged 0-3 months who developed group B Strep infection in 2019 were BAME.

Ms Nadine Dorries: The data is not held in the format requested.

Happity: Mental Health

Layla Moran: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will make an assessment of the potential merits of working with the Happity parent platform to support the mental health of parents and children.

Ms Nadine Dorries: Holding answer received on 14 July 2020



The Department regularly engages with organisations to assess the effectiveness of, and evidence base for, their proposals.

Baby Care Units: Coronavirus

Mrs Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, pursuant to the Answer of 30 June 2020 to Question 64109 on Baby Care Units: Coronavirus, what plans he has to introduce rapid covid-19 testing for parents of babies in neonatal care.

Ms Nadine Dorries: During the COVID-19 Pandemic, neonatal services have been working hard to support parents to care for their babies while still ensuring that services are safe.Information produced by the British Association of Paediatric Medicine sets out that the same arrangements for testing should be offered to parents of babies in neonatal care as are applied to staff, in order to minimise unnecessary separation. This includes testing of symptomatic parents and testing of suspected contacts.Current clinical advice is that asymptomatic testing can be conducted where clinically appropriate for outbreak investigation and infection control. These decisions are made by local decision makers based on patient and procedural risk.The sixth week of NHS Test and Trace figures published on 16 July show anyone getting a test at a regional test site or mobile testing unit can expect their result by the next day.

Coronavirus: Screening

Rachel Reeves: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether an internal audit has been undertaken into reported problems with data collection for testing during the covid-19 outbreak.

Ms Nadine Dorries: Holding answer received on 16 July 2020



We can confirm that our internal audit function has not undertaken an audit into reported problems with data collection for testing during the COVID-19 outbreak.

Coronavirus: Screening

Imran Hussain: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many applications to access the National Testing Programme dashboard were received from each local authority on each day since 8 June 2020.

Imran Hussain: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many applications to access to the National Testing Programme dashboard were granted for each local authority on each day since 8 June 2020.

Ms Nadine Dorries: Holding answer received on 16 July 2020



Since June, we have been working with Public Health England and the Joint Biosecurity Centre to provide local authorities with easy-to-use dashboard of testing and triage data. This can be used to monitor their area for flare-ups of the disease so that they can make critical decisions in their areas. Public Health England started providing individual-level, test data on the 24 June enabled through a data sharing agreement with Directors of Public Health. Since 10 June all local authorities have access to their data and the number of local authorities requesting access to the dashboard so far is 1,199 and the number granted is 1,130.

Mental Health: Children and Young People

Mohammad Yasin: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps the Government is taking to ensure that schools can respond effectively to children and young people’s mental health needs when they return in September 2020.

Ms Nadine Dorries: The Department for Education has published detailed plans for all children and young people to return to full-time education from September. The guidance highlights the particular need to focus on pastoral support and mental wellbeing as a central part of what schools provide, in order to re-engage them and rebuild social interaction with their friends and teachers. This will involve curriculum provision as well as extra-curricular and pastoral support, and that Department’s recently published relationships, sex and health education training module will support teachers with preparation to deliver content on mental health and wellbeing. We are also implementing the core proposals in our response to the consultation ‘Transforming children and young people’s mental health provision’ Green Paper including, where possible, adapting the support made available during the COVID-19 outbreak to the circumstances that schools and colleges and children and young people will face once the new academic year starts.

Mental Health Services: Recruitment

Mary Glindon: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, with reference to the document entitled, Stepping forward to 2020/21: The mental health workforce plan for England, published by the NHS in July 2017, how many of the additional 19,000 mental health staff to be recruited by 2020 were employed by June 2020.

Ms Nadine Dorries: The mental health workforce has increased by over 9,500 (8.8%) between March 2017 (the baseline year for Stepping Forward, The Mental Health Workforce Plan for England) and March 2020.

Mental Health Services: Recruitment

Mary Glindon: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what plans he has to expand the size of the mental health workforce to meet the demand for mental health services after the covid-19 outbreak.

Ms Nadine Dorries: We remain committed to growing the mental health workforce to achieve the ambitions set out in the NHS Long Term Plan. The interim NHS People Plan, published in June 2019 set out actions to reduce vacancies and secure the staff we need for the future. Since then, there have been a number of initiatives put in place to increase the National Health Service mental health workforce. The final People Plan will be published in due course, will set out a further robust plan for growth in the nursing and medical workforce.

Mental Health Services: Recruitment

Mary Glindon: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what estimate he has made of the number of (a) neuropsychologists and (b) neuropsychiatrists that will be required to meet the demand for mental health services from people with neurological conditions.

Ms Nadine Dorries: The Department has not made such an estimate. Decisions about the appointment of neuropsychiatrists and neuropsychologists are determined locally by National Health Service trusts and according to demand.

Suicide: Mental Health Services

Liz Twist: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, with reference to paragraph 59 of the Government's report of January 2017 entitled, Preventing suicide in England: Third progress report of the cross-government outcomes strategy to save lives, what progress NHS England has made on its plans to develop an evidence-based treatment pathway for self-harm for people of all ages as it committed to doing so for 2017-18 and 2018-19; and what the timetable is for that treatment pathway to come into existence.

Ms Nadine Dorries: The Cross-Government Suicide Prevention Workplan, published January 2019, set out that NHS England is working with the National Collaborating Centre for Mental Health to develop a framework for adult and older adult community mental health services, including for people who self-harm. Following advice from members of NHS England’s Expert Reference Group, the framework replaced the planned pathways. It will consider the needs of people who self harm while being cared for in the community, giving due regard to existing National Institute for Health and Care Excellence guidance on the longer-term management of people who self harm. The Framework was published in September 2019 and is available on the NHS England and NHS Improvement website. For children and young people, the NHS Long Term Plan makes commitments to expand children and young people’s services to provide an enhanced crisis offer. This expansion includes further work to strengthen local pathways between community, crisis and inpatient services, which will improve the evidence based self-harm pathway.

Coronavirus: Contact Tracing

Robert Halfon: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will provide further clarification on the criterion used to define close proximity for the purposes of Test and Trace.

Ms Nadine Dorries: Holding answer received on 16 July 2020



Since NHS Test and Trace was launched, on 28 May 2020, it has reached more than 144,000 people who may have otherwise unknowingly spread the virus to others.A contact is defined as someone who:- has had close contact (for instance direct face-to-face contact) with someone with COVID-19; or- spent more than one minute within one metre, or 15 minutes within two metres, of someone who has tested positive for COVID-19.We would also look to trace people who have travelled in a small vehicle with someone with COVID-19 or sat next to them on a plane.

Death Certificates: Ethnic Groups

Thangam Debbonaire: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will make it his policy that ethnic information should be included on death certificates.

Ms Nadine Dorries: The recent Public Health England report ‘Beyond the Data: Understanding the impact of COVID-19 on BAME groups’ recommended the mandatory collection of ethnicity data at death certification. How to take this forward is being considered by the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Equalities (Kemi Badenoch MP) as part of the wider work she is leading to improve the quality of data on ethnic disparities and COVID-19.

Doctors: Negligence

Dr Dan Poulter: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what plans he has to protect doctors from clinical negligence investigations arising from the need to work in different specialities to their own area of routine clinical practice during the covid-19 pandemic.

Dr Dan Poulter: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what plans he has to protect doctors from litigation arising from the need to work in different specialities to their own area of routine clinical practice during the covid-19 pandemic.

Ms Nadine Dorries: Holding answer received on 20 July 2020



The Government’s focus throughout this period has been to support the National Health Service and NHS staff to respond effectively to the pandemic and this includes supporting NHS staff who are working outside their own area of routine clinical practice.Healthcare professionals should at all times ensure they are competent to carry out any practice requested of them. If they are asked to work for an NHS trust or general practitioner practice, the existing state indemnity schemes will provide them with cover for clinical negligence arising from their activities. In the unlikely event that they are involved in the novel delivery of NHS services that fall outside the scope of these state schemes, we have ensured that they will be covered by the indemnity provision under the Coronavirus Act 2020.

Mental Health Act 1983

Bob Blackman: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, when he plans to bring forward legislative proposals to reform the Mental Health Act 1983; and whether he plans to make provisions on children's mental health services a central part of those legislative proposals.

Ms Nadine Dorries: We have committed to publishing a White Paper which will set out the Government’s response to Sir Simon Wessely’s Independent Review of the Mental Health Act 1983 and pave the way for reform of the Act. We will publish our White Paper as soon as it is possible to do so. We will consult publicly on our proposals and will bring forward a Bill to amend the Act when parliamentary time allows. The Independent Review made a number of recommendations around how the law works for children and young people. The Government will respond to these in the White Paper. The Mental Health Act 1983 covers the assessment, treatment and rights of people of all ages with a mental health disorder. It does not cover the provision of children’s mental health services.

Mental Health Act 1983

Kate Osborne: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, when the Government plans to bring forward legislative proposals to reform the Mental Health Act 1983.

Ms Nadine Dorries: Holding answer received on 20 July 2020



I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave to the hon. Member for Luton South (Rachel Hopkins MP) on 14 July 2020 to Question 68461.

Mental Health Act 1983

Sarah Olney: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, when he plans he has to bring forward legislative proposals on reform the Mental Health Act 1983; and whether the needs of children will be included in those proposals.

Ms Nadine Dorries: Holding answer received on 20 July 2020



We have committed to publishing a White Paper which will set out the Government’s response to Sir Simon Wessely’s Independent Review of the Mental Health Act 1983 and pave the way for reform of the Act.We will publish our White Paper as soon as it is possible to do so. We will consult publicly on our proposals and will bring forward a Bill to amend the Act when parliamentary time allows.The Independent Review made a number of recommendations around how the law works for children and young people. The Government will respond to these in the White Paper.

Mental Health Services: Children and Young People

Dr Lisa Cameron: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what plans he has to tackle the mental health needs of children upon the easement of local authority Children and Adolescent Mental Health Service duties to assess, plan for and meet individuals’ care and support needs under the Care Act 2014.

Ms Nadine Dorries: National Health Service mental health services for children and young people have remained open throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, delivering support digitally, over the phone and face to face where possible. Since 29 June 2020, no local authorities in England have been operating under Care Act 2014 easements.

Hospitals: Coronavirus

Nick Fletcher: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to update guidance on allowing patients to be accompanied at (a) pregnancy scans and (b) other hospital appointments during the covid-19 outbreak.

Ms Nadine Dorries: The National Health Service is making arrangements to ensure that women are supported and cared for safely through pregnancy, birth and the period afterwards during this pandemic.Decisions on partners attending scans and appointments is subject to local discretion by trusts and other NHS bodies. Local maternity teams will be able to advise women on their policy on partners attending antenatal appointments including scans.Guidance produced by the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists is clear that women should be encouraged to have one birth partner, who has no symptoms of COVID-19, present with them during any type of labour and birth, unless the birth occurs under general anaesthetic.

Mental Health Services: Expenditure

Dr Rosena Allin-Khan: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what his Department's expenditure was on mental health services in 2019; and what estimate he has made of his Department's projected spend for mental health services in 2021.

Ms Nadine Dorries: Holding answer received on 21 July 2020



This information is only available by financial year, not calendar year. Details of expenditure on National Health Service mental health services are published by NHS England and NHS Improvement through the NHS Mental Health Dashboard which is available at the following link: https://www.england.nhs.uk/mental-health/taskforce/imp/mh-dashboard/ Final outturn figures for 2019/20 and planned expenditure figures for 2020/21 are not yet available. Planned expenditure on mental health services for 2019/20 by clinical commissioning groups and NHS England and NHS Improvement specialised commissioning was £13,055 million.

Department for International Development

Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office: Staff

Dame Diana Johnson: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, how the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office plans to maintain the expertise of staff relating to (a) development projects, (b) climate change emergencies and (b) other key policy issues of her Department after the merger of the Foreign and Commonwealth Office with her Department.

Wendy Morton: Merging the departments will bring together the best of what we do in aid and diplomacy, and create new opportunities for staff. The ambition, vision and expertise of DFID and FCO staff will be at the heart of the new department – taking forward the work of UK aid, which will remain central to our mission.We will continue to look at how our aid budget can be spent most effectively in our national interest, including through the Integrated Review – which will inform the priorities of the new Department.

Overseas Aid

Dame Diana Johnson: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what monitoring will be putin place after the merger of her Department with the Foreign and Commonwealth Office to ensure that the 0.7% of UK GDP pledged for overseas development aid is used for that purpose and not for security and diplomatic aims.

Wendy Morton: Our commitment to spending 0.7 percent of our national income on aid is enshrined in law and the UK continues to abide by the OECD DAC rules for aid. All UK official development assistance (ODA) must meet OECD DAC criteria, and have the promotion of the economic development and welfare of developing countries as its primary purpose. We will continue to look at how this money can be spent most effectively, taking into account our national interest, including through the Integrated Review – which will inform the priorities of the new Department.

Developing Countries: Overseas Aid

Chi Onwurah: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, whether the administration of Official Development Assistance will continue to prioritise (a) economic development and (b) welfare in developing countries after her Department merges with the Foreign and Commonwealth Office.

Wendy Morton: The UK continues to report its aid spend in line with the international definitions of Official Development Assistance as set by the OECD Development Assistance Committee (DAC). The core definition of ODA is spend that has the promotion of the economic development and welfare of developing countries as its main objective.We will continue to look at how the UK’s aid can maximise the UK’s role as a force for good in the world, including through the Integrated Review. This will inform the priorities of the Foreign Commonwealth and Development Office.As the Prime Minister said in the House, the work of UK aid to reduce poverty will remain central to the new department’s mission.

Department for Education

Department for Education: Apprentices

Robert Halfon: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps his Department is taking to reach the public sector apprenticeship target.

Gillian Keegan: The department has successfully met its public sector target for the number of apprenticeship starts in each of the previous three years. The table below shows the target and actual number of starts, and the resulting percentage of the workforce that this represents.Year Target number of startsActual number of startsPercentage of the workforce2017/181081162.30%2018/191341953.20%2019/201551882.80% Data taken from Department for Education Departmental Summary 2017/18, 2018/19, 2019/20.

Children: Coronavirus

Kate Green: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what additional funding his Department plans to allocate to services for (a) deaf and (b) disabled children as part of the £1 billion catch-up funding for missed education during the covid-19 outbreak.

Vicky Ford: The £1 billion COVID-19 catch-up package is made up of £650 million to be shared across state primary and secondary schools over the 2020-21 academic year, and a National Tutoring Programme, worth £350 million, which will increase access to high-quality tuition for the most disadvantaged children and young people over the 2020-21 academic year.The universal £650 million catch-up premium funding recognises that all pupils, irrespective of their background or location, have lost time in education. Whilst school leaders will decide how it is used, the intention is that this money will be spent on the most effective interventions. The funding will be available for all state-funded mainstream and special schools, and alternative provision. All schools should use their catch-up premium funding as a single total from which to prioritise support for all pupils, guided by the level of individual need.On Monday 20 July we announced more details about how the funding will be distributed to schools. This confirmed that a primary school of 200 pupils will receive £16,000 while a secondary school of 1,000 pupils will receive £80,000. Special, alternative provision and hospital schools will be funded at three times the rate of mainstream schools for the 2020-21 academic year.This year we are providing £780 million additional high needs funding across England for children with the most complex special educational needs and disabilities. We are providing a further £730 million in 2021-22, which will bring the total high needs budget to over £8 billion. This is in addition to the catch-up funding.

Children: Coronavirus

Kate Green: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how the £650 million additional catch-up funding for schools to support children who have missed education due to the covid-19 outbreak will be distributed; and if he will make a statement.

Nick Gibb: On Monday 20 July we announced more details about how the catch-up funding will be distributed to schools, available here: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/coronavirus-covid-19-catch-up-premium. This confirmed that a primary school of 200 pupils will receive £16,000 while a secondary school of 1,000 pupils will receive £80,000. Special, alternative provision and hospital schools will be funded at three times the rate of mainstream schools for the 2020-21 academic year. The universal catch up premium will be paid as a grant to all state-funded primary and secondary schools in England over the 2020/21 academic year on a per pupil basis. The funding will be provided in three tranches. We will provide schools with an initial part payment in autumn 2020, based on the latest available data on pupils in mainstream schools and high needs place numbers in special, alternative provision, hospital and special schools not maintained by a local authority. We will then distribute a second grant payment in early 2021, based on updated pupil and place data. A further payment will be paid during the 2021 summer term. The universal £650 million catch-up premium funding recognises that all pupils, irrespective of their background or location, have lost time in education. All schools should use their catch-up premium funding as a single total from which to prioritise support for all pupils, guided by the level of individual need. Whilst school leaders will decide how it is used, the intention is that this money will be spent on the most effective interventions. To support schools to make best use of this funding, the Education Endowment Foundation have published a COVID-19 Support Guide for Schools with evidence based approaches to catch-up for all students: https://educationendowmentfoundation.org.uk/covid-19-resources/covid-19-support-guide-for-schools/#nav-covid-19-support-guide-for-schools1.

Nurseries: Finance

Gill Furniss: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment he has made of the adequacy of funding allocated to nurseries to support the 30 hours free childcare entitlement for eligible children.

Vicky Ford: The government continues to support families with their childcare costs. Last October, we announced increases in our hourly rates for the 2 year old entitlement and in the vast majority of areas for the 3 and 4 year old entitlement, effective from April of this year.We also announced that supplementary funding for maintained nursery schools will continue until the end of the financial year 2020-21. We are committed to supporting maintained nursery schools in the long term. Guidance on the use of free early education entitlements funding during the COVID-19 outbreak is available here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/use-of-free-early-education-entitlements-funding-during-the-coronavirus-outbreak/use-of-free-early-education-entitlements-funding-during-coronavirus-covid-19.We are planning to spend over £3.6 billion on our early education entitlements in 2020-21. Future funding is a matter for the next spending review.We will continue to monitor the market closely through a range of research projects which provide insight into various aspects of the childcare and provider market.During the COVID-19 outbreak, we have continued to pay the entitlements to local authorities as usual.The government has also provided childcare providers with a range of measures to offer financial assistance during the COVID-19 outbreak, including business rates relief, the Coronavirus Business Interruption Loan, the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme and the Self-Employment Income Support Scheme.On 20 July, we announced that we will fund childcare at the level we would have done before the COVID-19 outbreak until the end of the year. This will give nurseries and childminders another term of secure income, regardless of whether fewer children are attending.We continue to work closely with the early years sector to understand how it can best be supported to ensure that sufficient childcare is available for those returning to work now, and for all families who need it in the longer term.

Schools: Coronavirus

Alec Shelbrooke: To ask the Secretary of State for Education,if schools will be able to use the £1 billion Covid Catch-Up Premium for intensive revision lessons for Key Stage 4 pupils wishing to resit their GCSEs in the Autumn.

Nick Gibb: The Government has announced a catch-up package worth £1 billion, including a ‘Catch-Up Premium’ worth a total of £650 million, to support schools to make up for lost teaching time. This ‘Catch-Up Premium’ will be paid to schools in the 2020-21 academic year to support catch up for students aged 5 to 16. As part of the catch-up package we have also announced a £350 million National Tutoring Programme which includes a 16 to 19 Tuition Fund. This fund will allocate up to £96 million as a one-off, one year, ring-fenced grant to school sixth forms, colleges and all other 16 to 19 providers to provide small group tutoring activity for disadvantaged 16 to 19 students whose studies have been disrupted as a result of COVID-19, including those resitting GCSEs. Further detail of this element will be confirmed in due course.

Education: Standards

Ian Lavery: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps his Department is taking to tackle the educational attainment gap in (a) Wansbeck and (b) other local education authorities when compared with higher educational attainment in London.

Nick Gibb: Standards are rising in England’s schools, to the benefit of all pupils. Compared with 2010, more pupils are taking core academic GCSEs - those subjects considered essential for many degrees that also provide a sound basis for a variety of careers. More children are reading fluently and most pupils now attend good or outstanding schools. Disadvantaged children are performing better relative to their peers; the attainment gap has narrowed at every stage from the early years to age 16 since 2011. Our widespread reforms have supported these improvements. We are committed to maintaining these high standards and continuing to tackle the attainment gap as the country recovers from the COVID-19 outbreak. On 19 June we announced a £1 billion COVID “catch-up” package to directly tackle the impact of lost teaching time. £650 million will be shared across state primary, secondary and special schools over the 2020/21 academic year. This one-off grant to support pupils recognises that all young people have lost time in education as a result of the outbreak, regardless of their location or background.  School leaders will have discretion over how to use the funding but we expect it to focus on the most effective approaches. The Education Endowment Foundation has published guidance to help schools make good decisions about how to use the money effectively. Separately, a National Tutoring Programme worth £350 million will increase access to high-quality tuition for the most disadvantaged children and young people. This will help to accelerate their academic progress and tackle the attainment gap between them and their peers. This £1 billion package is on top of the £14.4 billion core funding increase over three years announced last year, and the £2.4 billion pupil premium schools continue to receive on top of core funding to support their disadvantaged pupils. Schools in the Wansbeck constituency are sharing pupil premium funding of more than £4.4 million this year.

Children: Coronavirus

Ian Lavery: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what support he plans to make available to children who live with elderly or vulnerable people in the Autumn in the event that there is a second wave of covid-19.

Vicky Ford: We now know much more about COVID-19 and so in future, there will be far fewer children and young people advised to shield whenever community transmission rates are high. Therefore, the majority of pupils and students will be able to return to school. Shielding advice for all adults and children will pause on 1 August, subject to a continued decline in the rates of community transmission of COVID-19.Schools should note that:a small number of pupils and students will still be unable to attend in line with public health advice because they are self-isolating and have had symptoms or a positive test result themselves; or because they are a close contact of someone who has COVID-19;shielding advice for all adults and children will pause on 1 August, subject to a continued decline in the rates of community transmission of COVID-19. This means that even the small number of pupils and students who will remain on the shielded patient list can also return to their setting, as can those who have family members who are shielding. Current advice on shielding is available here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/guidance-on-shielding-and-protecting-extremely-vulnerable-persons-from-covid-19;if rates of disease rise in local areas, children and young people (or family members) from that area, and that area only, will be advised to shield during the period where rates remain high and therefore they may be temporarily absent; andsome pupils and students are no longer required to shield, but those who generally remain under the care of a specialist health professional may need to discuss their care with their health professional before returning to school in September (usually at their next planned clinical appointment). Advice from the Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health is available here: https://www.rcpch.ac.uk/resources/covid-19-shielding-guidance-children-young-people#children-who-should-be-advised-to-shield.Where a pupil is unable to attend their setting because they are complying with clinical or public health advice, we expect settings to be able to immediately offer them access to remote education. Settings should monitor engagement with this activity. For more detail, see the guidance for full opening, which is available here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/actions-for-schools-during-the-coronavirus-outbreak/guidance-for-full-opening-schools#section-3-curriculum-behaviour-and-pastoral-support.As part of remote education contingency planning, we are supporting sector-led initiatives such as the Oak National Academy. This new enterprise has been created by 40 teachers from schools across England. It will provide 180 video lessons for free each week, across a broad range of subjects, for every year group from reception through to year 10. By 21 June, 3.9 million unique users had accessed the Oak National Academy website and 13.2 million lessons had been viewed.Additionally, the BBC has developed resources for families as part of a comprehensive new education package, which is now available on TV and online at BBC Bitesize.The government has also committed over £100 million to boost remote education, this includes: providing devices and internet access for those who need it most, ensuring every school that wants it has access to free, expert technical support to get set up on Google for Education or Microsoft’s Office 365 Education, and offering peer support from schools and colleges leading the way with the use of education technology.We have published a comprehensive range of advice and guidance to support schools in providing remote education during this time, which is available here: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/guidance-for-schools-coronavirus-covid-19.This includes a list of high-quality online resources, which have been assessed with support from some of the country’s leading educational experts, to help pupils learn at home. We also recognise the importance of schools learning from each other’s emerging practice in developing their approach to remote provision. Our guidance includes case studies from schools developing their practice in a variety of different circumstances. The list of online resources is available here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/coronavirus-covid-19-online-education-resources.

Schools: Finance

Ian Lavery: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if he will commit to further funding increases to schools for (a) building improvements and (b) teacher recruitment.

Nick Gibb: Both building improvements for schools and teacher recruitment are key priorities for the Department. The Government is providing an additional £560 million in capital funding this year to maintain and improve school buildings, on top of over £1.4 billion already allocated in 2020-21. My right hon. Friend, the Prime Minister has also announced plans for a transformative ten-year school rebuilding programme that will benefit schools across England, starting with over £1 billion for the first 50 schools. Further details will be confirmed following the conclusion of the comprehensive spending review. Last year, we published the Teacher Recruitment and Retention Strategy which set out our priorities for reform and investment to ensure we continue to attract and retain recruits in the teaching profession. We have pledged to raise starting salaries for new teachers to £30,000 by September 2022, beginning with a 5.5% pay rise for new teachers in the next academic year as announced this week. Alongside investment in pay, we provide a package of financial incentives, including scholarships worth up to £28,000 and bursaries worth up to £26,000 in key secondary subjects, alongside early career retention payments totaling £6,000 in the second, third and fourth year of teaching. Additional uplifts worth up to £9,000 are available for teachers in 39 high-need local authorities.

Schools: Coronavirus

Ian Lavery: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what additional support he plans to provide to schools to ensure that they can adequately plan catch-up programmes for children returning after the lockdown due to the covid-19 outbreak.

Vicky Ford: On 19 June, the government announced a catch-up package worth £1 billion to directly tackle the impact of lost teaching time.The package includes a ‘catch-up premium’ worth a total of £650 million to support schools to make up for lost teaching time. Headteachers can decide how best to use their school’s premium allocation to tackle the impact of lost teaching time on their pupils, but are encouraged to spend it on evidence-driven approaches including small group or one-to-one tuition, support over the summer, or additional support for great teaching. To support schools to make best use of this funding, the Education Endowment Foundation have published a COVID-19 Support Guide for Schools with evidence based approaches to catch up for all students, which is available at:https://educationendowmentfoundation.org.uk/covid-19-resources/covid-19-support-guide-for-schools/#nav-covid-19-support-guide-for-schools1.Alongside this, we have also announced a new £350 million National Tutoring Programme for disadvantaged children and young people. This will increase access to high-quality tuition, helping to accelerate their academic progress and tackling the attainment gap between them and their peers.On 20 July, the department published further guidance on the £1 billion catch up package. This guidance outlines that, through the catch-up premium, a 1,000 pupil secondary school will receive £80,000 and a 200 pupil primary school will receive £16,000 to tackle the impact of lost teaching time on pupils as a result of the coronavirus pandemic. It also includes further detail on the £350 million National Tutoring Programme. The guidance is available at:https://www.gov.uk/guidance/coronavirus-covid-19-catch-up-premium.Recognising the additional work schools will need to do to help students to catch up, this £1 billion package is on top of the £2.6 billion increase this year in school budgets that was announced last year, as part of a £14 billion three-year funding settlement.The government’s plan is for all pupils, in all year groups, to return to school full-time from the beginning of the autumn term. On 2 July we published guidance to help schools prepare for this. The guidance is available at:https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/actions-for-schools-during-the-coronavirus-outbreak/guidance-for-full-opening-schools.

Special Educational Needs: Coronavirus

Ian Lavery: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what additional support he plans to provide to schools to ensure that the needs of children with an Education, Health and Care plan are able to safely return to school during the covid-19 outbreak.

Vicky Ford: On 2 July, the government published detailed guidance for schools, including special education settings, to help them plan for a full return of their pupils in September. The guidance, which has been developed with medical experts from Public Health England, provides specific advice on how schools should implement a ‘system of controls’ to reduce the risk of transmission.The guidance for special educational settings can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/guidance-for-full-opening-special-schools-and-other-specialist-settings.The guidance for mainstream settings can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/actions-for-schools-during-the-coronavirus-outbreak/guidance-for-full-opening-schools.Since May, as a result of the COVID-19 outbreak, it has been necessary to modify Section 42 of the Children and Families Act 2014 so that local authorities and health commissioners must use their ‘reasonable endeavours’ to secure or arrange the specified special educational health care provision in education, health and care (EHC) plans. We are committed to removing these flexibilities as soon as possible so that children and young people can receive the support they need to return to school. As such, unless the evidence changes, we will not be issuing further national notices to modify the EHC duties but will consider whether any such flexibilities may be required locally to respond to outbreaks. This means that children with EHC plans will be able to receive support as usual, upon their return to school.We know that transport arrangements for children and young people with special educational needs and disabilities will be critical to ensuring a safe return. We will publish guidance for local authorities who provide dedicated school transport shortly.We will continue to work closely with and support special educational settings, parents and carers, local authorities and other partner organisations, as they plan for the autumn term.

Music: Education

Dame Diana Johnson: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether private music teachers are able to resume working from (a) their home and (b) a student's homes with effect from 4 July 2020 if they comply with the covid-secure guidance.

Nick Gibb: As of 4 July, providers offering out-of-school activities to children, including private music teachers, have been able to open for both indoor and outdoor provision with safety measures in place. We have published guidance for providers of these activities on the measures they should put in place to ensure they are operating as safely as possible, available here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/protective-measures-for-holiday-or-after-school-clubs-and-other-out-of-school-settings-for-children-during-the-coronavirus-covid-19-outbreak/protective-measures-for-out-of-school-settings-during-the-coronavirus-covid-19-outbreak. If a private music teacher normally offers provision in their own home or students’ homes, they should also refer to the government guidance on working safely during COVID-19 in other people’s homes, available here: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/working-safely-during-coronavirus-covid-19/homes. Providers should note that there may be an additional risk of infection in environments where people are singing, chanting, playing wind or brass instruments or shouting. This applies even if individuals are at a distance. As the risk of transmission is considerably lower outdoors, providers who normally run sessions indoors should consider whether they are able to do so safely outside. However, if this is not possible then private music teachers working from their own home should consider whether a specific, well-ventilated room could be designated for lessons. Providers should also be aware that at this time they should not be permitting live performances, including music, to take place in front of a live audience.

European Institute of Human Sciences

Alicia Kearns: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what recent assessment his Department has made of the potential risk to (a) national security and (b) radicalisation of the UK of the European Institute for Human Sciences.

Michelle Donelan: Risks to national security in the UK are a matter for the Home Office. The department has made no assessment of the potential risk to radicalisation of the UK of the European Institute for Human Sciences. The department works with national and local partners to monitor risks of extremism and radicalisation in education. It has mechanisms in place to investigate extremism concerns linked to the sector and where substantiated, take appropriate action to safeguard children and young people from harm. In regard to whether degrees or diplomas issued by the European Institute for Human Sciences are accredited: a) With UCAS and higher education, the institute is not an Office for Students registered higher education provider. The government is therefore not able to answer questions regarding its accreditation. b) The Institute is not a recognised awarding organisation, so would not be regulated by Ofqual. The government is therefore equally not able to answer questions regarding its accreditation. c) We have no information as to whether the British Accreditation Council accredits the institutes’ degrees and diplomas, as the council is an independent accrediting body for independent further and higher education providers in the UK.

European Institute of Human Sciences

Alicia Kearns: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether degrees or diplomas issued by the European Institute for Human Sciences are accredited by (a) UKAS, (b) Ofqual or (c) the British Accreditation Council.

Michelle Donelan: Risks to national security in the UK are a matter for the Home Office. The department has made no assessment of the potential risk to radicalisation of the UK of the European Institute for Human Sciences. The department works with national and local partners to monitor risks of extremism and radicalisation in education. It has mechanisms in place to investigate extremism concerns linked to the sector and where substantiated, take appropriate action to safeguard children and young people from harm. In regard to whether degrees or diplomas issued by the European Institute for Human Sciences are accredited: a) With UCAS and higher education, the institute is not an Office for Students registered higher education provider. The government is therefore not able to answer questions regarding its accreditation. b) The Institute is not a recognised awarding organisation, so would not be regulated by Ofqual. The government is therefore equally not able to answer questions regarding its accreditation. c) We have no information as to whether the British Accreditation Council accredits the institutes’ degrees and diplomas, as the council is an independent accrediting body for independent further and higher education providers in the UK.

Education: Coronavirus

Fleur Anderson: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether his Department has established a second wave nurseries, schools and universities plan to prepare for a potential second wave of covid-19 (a) infections and (b) lockdowns.

Nick Gibb: The Government has developed plans for the next academic year to ensure that children and young people can return to nurseries, schools, further and higher education. We have put inplace a system of controls that will reduce the risk of transmission for students and staff, as well as contingencies in the case of local lockdowns to ensure there is a high-quality remote education alternative. We continue to work closely with the education sector to prepare for the autumn term. Links to the relevant guidance are provided below: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/coronavirus-covid-19-early-years-and-childcare-closures;https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/actions-for-schools-during-the-coronavirus-outbreak/guidance-for-full-opening-schools;https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/coronavirus-covid-19-maintaining-further-education-provision/what-fe-colleges-and-providers-will-need-to-do-from-the-start-of-the-2020-autumn-term;https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/higher-education-reopening-buildings-and-campuses/higher-education-reopening-buildings-and-campuses. We will keep guidance under review and adjust and adapt our approach as necessary.

Schools: Coronavirus

Margaret Greenwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment he has made of the effect of the covid-19 outbreak on (a) primary school and (b) secondary school budgets.

Nick Gibb: Schools have continued to receive their budgets as usual, regardless of any periods of partial or complete closure. This ensures that they are able to continue to pay their staff and meet their other regular financial commitments. Following last year’s Spending Round, school budgets are rising by £2.6 billion in 2020-21, £4.8 billion in 2021-22 and £7.1billion in 2022-23, compared to 2019-20.We are providing additional funding to schools, on top of existing budgets, to cover specific unavoidable costs incurred between March and July due to the COVID-19 outbreak that cannot be met from their existing resources.As schools’ costs will vary, we are giving schools the opportunity to claim online for the costs they have incurred due to: increased premises related costs associated with keeping schools open over the Easter and summer half term holidays; support for free school meals for eligible children who are not in school, where schools are not using the national voucher scheme; and additional cleaning costs required due to confirmed or suspected COVID-19 cases, over and above the cost of existing cleaning arrangements.We have also announced a package of support consisting of a universal catch up premium for schools of £650 million to help them make up for lost teaching time, and a new £350 million National Tutoring Programme for disadvantaged children and young people.We recognise that during this period, many publicly funded schools are not able to secure income from private sources that they normally would, for example letting their facilities, providing wrap around childcare or offering catering services. Schools have been able to use the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme for staff delivering and funded by these services, if they are unable to make the necessary savings from their budgets or redeploy these staff.

Ministry of Justice

Ministry of Justice: Apprentices

Robert Halfon: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what steps his Department is taking to reach the public sector apprenticeship target.

Chris Philp: The Ministry of Justice’s Apprenticeship Strategy, designed to meet the allocated targets consists of 3 strands:1) Promoting the use of Cabinet Office approved apprenticeships programmes to develop professional skills;2) Designing and delivering operational apprenticeship standards for specific operational roles; and3) Promoting the use of apprenticeships as an entry route / development of career pathways for staff at all levels of the organisation.In March 2020 the MoJ reported a year on year increase in apprenticeships starts vs 2018-19 by 31%; and it was expected that this trend would continue into the new financial year, with the recruitment of c3,500 prison officer apprentices nationally throughout 2020-21.Unfortunately, Covid-19 has significantly impacted the delivery of our apprenticeship strategy; particularly in the prison operational roles with activity being paused in the short term. Plans are in place to rapidly re-start operational apprenticeships as soon as it is both safe and operationally viable to do so.The apprenticeship strategy focuses on recruitment of operational staff within prisons being largely predicated on an apprenticeship model, with all new operational support grades being strongly encouraged to undertake a level 2 apprenticeship as part of their initial training; and plans for all new prison officers to undertake a level 3 apprenticeship with effect from January 2021 (following a successful pilot of the programme in early 2020)Across the MoJ, 1,199 staff are currently undertaking an apprenticeship programme of learning; of which 143 are on a higher level (degree level or above) programme. Apprenticeships span a broad range of professional and operational areas such as Business Administration, Customer Service, Operational Delivery, Project Management and Finance. These cover a range of qualifications from Level 2 (equivalent to GCSE, up to Level 7 which is equivalent to a Masters Degree.The MoJ Apprenticeship Strategy is being updated to include an even stronger focus on ensuring equity of access to programmes for staff across all protected characteristics and will seek to understand trends for withdrawals and completions.

Employment Tribunals: Coronavirus

Ronnie Cowan: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what steps his Department has taken to ensure employment tribunals can take place in a timely manner during the covid-19 outbreak.

Ronnie Cowan: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what discussions his Department has had with relevant stakeholders on the recommencing of employment tribunals throughout the UK as covid-19 lockdown restrictions are eased; and if he will make a statement.

Chris Philp: Employment Tribunals have continued to sit during the covid-19 lockdown restrictions by making use of online and remote technology to hear cases and ensure continued access to justice for users. Face to face hearings are now starting to resume where it is safe to do so in line with comprehensive and ongoing risk assessments. The details of Employment Tribunal receipts and disposals during the period of lockdown restrictions can be found here:www.gov.uk/government/statistical-data-sets/hmcts-management-information-may-2020Having responded effectively to the immediate crisis, HM Courts & Tribunals Service (HMCTS) is now fully focused on recovering its operations to increase courts and tribunals capacity to deal both with normal workloads across jurisdictions and outstanding cases. HMCTS has recently published a progress update on its recovery plans.https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/896779/HMCTS368_recovery_-_COVID-19-_Overview_of_HMCTS_response_A4L_v3.pdfThe Employment Tribunal Presidents have also published a document setting out how Employment Tribunals operate both now and in the months ahead.www.judiciary.uk/wp-content/uploads/2020/06/FAQ-edition-date-1-June-2020.pdf

Employment Tribunals Service: Coronavirus

Ronnie Cowan: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many employment tribunals, relating to variations of contract during the covid-19 outbreak, have taken place in Scotland.

Chris Philp: HM Courts & Tribunals Service do not hold the information requested.

Remand in Custody: Young People

Ms Lyn Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what proportion of people in custody aged (a) 18, (b) 19, and (c) 20 were held in custodial facilities where areas were shared with older prisoners in 2019.

Ms Lyn Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many (a) sentenced and (b) unsentenced people aged (i) 18, (ii) 19 and (iii) 20 were held in custodial facilities where areas were shared with older prisoners during 2019.

Ms Lyn Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many (a) men and (b) women aged (i) 18, (ii) 19, and (iii) 20 were held in custodial facilities where areas were shared with older prisoners during 2019.

Ms Lyn Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many who identify as (a) white, (b) black, (c) asian, and (d) mixed ethnicity aged (i) 18, (ii) 19 and (iii) 20 were held in custodial facilities where areas were shared with older prisoners in 2019.

Ms Lyn Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many people aged (a) 18, (b) 19, and (c) 20 were held in custody where areas were shared with older prisoners in (i) public and (ii) private custodial facilities in 2019.

Ms Lyn Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many people aged (a) 18, (b) 19 and (c) 20 were held in custodial facilities where areas were shared with older prisoners for (i) breach of statutory order, (ii) domestic burglary, (iii) drugs, (iv) robbery, (v) sexual offences, (vi) violence against the person and (vii) other offences in 2019.

Ms Lyn Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many people aged (a) 18, (b) 19, and (c) 20 were held in custodial facilities where areas were shared with older prisoners for terrorism offences in 2019.

Ms Lyn Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many people aged (a) 18, (b) 19 and (c) 20 and who have (i) mental health issues, (ii) instances of recorded self-harm, (iii) made suicide attempts, (iv) drug or alcohol dependency, (v) history of being in local authority care, (vi) history of child sexual exploitation, (vii) history of child criminal exploitation and (vii) other sources of vulnerability were held in custodial facilities where areas were shared with older prisoners during 2019.

Lucy Frazer: Please see the below tables in response to PQ75226, PQ75227, PQ75228, PQ75229, PQ75230 and PQ75231:PQ 75226: Prison population aged 18-20, by prison function and age; as at 30 June 2019, England & Wales Sole-function under-21 YOIs(1)Dual-designated prisons   Total5623,626Age  18160795191911,236202111,595 PQ 75227: Prison population aged 18-20, by prison function, age and custody status; as at 30 June 2019, England & Wales Sole-function under-21 YOIs(1)Dual-designated prisonsTotal5623,626Remand  Age  187324190323200314Sentenced  Age  1815346719191905202111,266Non-criminal(2) Age  1804190820015 PQ 75228: Prison population aged 18-20, by prison function, age and sex; as at 30 June 2019, England & Wales Sole-function under-21 YOIs(1)Dual-designated prisonsTotal5623,626Male  Age  18160775191911,193202111,543Female  Age  180201904320052 PQ 75229: Prison population aged 18-20, by prison function, age and ethnicity group; as at 30 June 2019, England & Wales Sole-function under-21 YOIs(1)Dual-designated prisonsTotal5623,626White  Age  186944819627272072934Black  Age  184517719722412090327Asian  Age  18286819281282018161Mixed  Age  18127619181022024137Other ethnic group Age  18620Not stated / Not recorded Age  180619162015 PQ 75230: Prison population aged 18-20, by prison function, age and 'Private / Public prison split'; as at 30 June 2019, England & Wales Sole-function under-21 YOIs(1)Dual-designated prisonsTotal5623,626Contracted Out ("Private") Age  180168190233200293Public  Age  18160627191911,003202111,302 PQ 75231: Prison population aged 18-20, by prison function, age and offence group; as at 30 June 2019, England & Wales(3) Sole-function under-21 YOIs(1)Dual-designated prisonsTotal5623,626Burglary  Age  18127919121142012152Drug Offences Age  181713319482732061367Robbery  Age  182912519371762031234Sexual offences Age  181034191061206109Violence against the person Age  185623319583032066370Other offences(4) Age  183619119263092035363 In regard to PQ75232 and PQ75233, this information is not held centrally. Offenders aged 18, 19 and 20 are sentenced to Detention in a Young Offender Institution (DYOI), however the dual designation of institutions as both HMP and YOI means the majority are held in establishment also holding adult prisoners aged 21 or over. Under dual designation, prisoners aged 18,19 and 20 do not share cells with adult prisoners, unless exceptional circumstance apply and on a case-by-case basis. Separation from adult prisoners in other areas of the prison varies by location (including separated wings). There are two designated YOIs for sentenced prisoners aged 18,19 and 20 (HMYOI Feltham (B) and HMYOI Aylesbury). As necessary, these prisoners from YOIs move to an adult prison when they turn 21. Notes (1) These figures include Sole-function YOIs and Youth Custody Service (YCS) YOIs. Sole-function YOIs hold solely 18-20 year olds and those that turn 21 who are due for imminent release or who are pending transfer into an adult prisonYCS YOIs hold 15-17 year olds and those that turn 18 who are due for imminent release or who are pending transfer into an 18+ YOI.The ‘Sole-function YOIs' are:- HMYOI Aylesbury- HMYOI Feltham (B) (separate site to the YCS YOI)The YCS YOIs are:- HMYOI Cookham Wood- HMYOI Werrington- HMYOI Feltham (A) (separate site to the 18-20 YOI)- HMYOI Wetherby Other establishments holding 18-20 year olds share facilities with older prisoners ('Dual designated prisons')More information can be found on the 'Prisons and their resettlement providers' page on gov.uk: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/prisons-and-their-resettlement-providers (2) The ‘non-criminal’ population comprises:Those held on ‘immigration grounds’ – which includes:- Those who have served their appropriate custodial term for a criminal offence but are then served with an IS91 ‘authorisation to hold on immigration detention grounds’ (held in prison awaiting deportation).- Those whose sole offence is not having appropriate immigration paperwork, and so would be held in an Immigration Removal Centre (IRC).A small number of individuals who are in prison for a civil ‘non-criminal’ offence, for example “Contempt of Court” or “Non-payment of Council Tax”. (3) Part (i) of PQ75231 is of disproportionate cost to identify. (4) Other offences include: 'non-burglary' Theft Offences, Criminal damage and arson, Possession of Weapons, Public order offences, Miscellaneous crimes against society, Fraud offences, Summary offences and 'Offence not recorded'. Data sources and quality: The figures in these tables have been drawn from administrative IT systems which, as with any large scale recording system, are subject to possible errors with data entry and processing.

Prisons: Crimes of Violence

Mary Glindon: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what comparative assessment he has made of levels of (a) assaults, (b) assaults on staff and (c) staffing in public and private prisons.

Lucy Frazer: The Ministry of Justice does not hold data covering a comparative assessment that compares staffing or assaults in public / privately managed prisons.We publish details on staffing in public prisons every quarter in our HMPPS Workforce Statistics, the latest version is from March and is available at the following link: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/her-majestys-prison-and-probation-service-workforce-quarterly-march-2020. We do not hold data on staffing levels in private prisons.There were 32,669 assaults in prisons in England and Wales in 2019, of which 26,821 were in public prisons (82% of total assaults) and 5,848 were in private prisons (18% of total assaults).There were 9,995 assaults on staff in prisons in England and Wales in 2019, of which 8,579 were in public prisons (86% of all assaults on staff) and 1,416 were in private prisons (14% of all assaults on staff).Please note that Birmingham changed from a private prison to a public prison in July 2019. The figures for Birmingham have not been split between the public prisons total and the private prisons total, all assaults in Birmingham for 2019 were recorded as being in private prisons.We closely monitor the level of violence in both public and privately managed prisons. This information is used to inform decisions around prison safety, such as procedures and training to support improved safety outcomes.

Rape: Prosecutions

Ellie Reeves: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what progress has been made on the review into the reduction in rape prosecutions; and what her timetable is for (a) completing that review and (b) publishing its recommendations.

Kit Malthouse: The Government recognises that the decline in the number of rape and serious sexual offences being charged and prosecuted in England and Wales is a cause for concern, and we are determined to do everything we can to ensure these appalling crimes are tackled effectively and victims are supported.A review of the criminal justice response to rape and serious sexual offences was commissioned in March 2019 by the National Criminal Justice Board (CJB). A sub-group of the CJB is driving forward the review and continues to gather and analyse detailed views from key groups and agencies across the Criminal Justice System to enable us to better understand how the system’s response to rape cases can be improved.The Government intends to publish its initial findings in the autumn.

Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government

Housing: Overcrowding

Jon Trickett: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, how many people are living in overcrowded accommodation in (a ) Havering, (b) Wiltshire, (c) Wandsworth, (d) Gloucestershire, (e) Ealing, (f) Hammersmith and Fulham, (g) Doncaster, (h) Plymouth, (i) Barking and Dagenham, (j) Westminster, (k) Milton Keynes, (l) Wakefield, (m) Haringey, (n) Medway, (o) Hounslow, (p) Brent, (q) Harrow, (r) Kensington and Chelsea, (s) Slough, (t) Suffolk, (u) Redbridge, (v)  Sandwell, (w) Enfield, (x) Tower Hamlets, (y) York, (z) Sunderland, (aa) Wigan, (bb) Windsor and Maidenhead, (cc) Leicester, (dd) Gateshead, (ee) Isle of Wight, (ff) Richmond upon Thames, (gg) Portsmouth, (hh) Redcar and Cleveland, (ii) Derbyshire and (jj) Walsall local authority area.

Christopher Pincher: The Ministry for Housing Communities and Local Government carries out the English Housing Survey each year. The survey collects information on overcrowding at the national and regional level. Data on overcrowding at a regional level can be found here : https://commonslibrary.parliament.uk/research-briefings/sn01013/ . The English Housing Survey is a sample survey of just over 13,000 respondents and 6,200 dwellings per year. The survey is not designed to provide data at the neighbourhood or local authority level since it does not survey enough people in each local authority to make the results statistically robust at that level.

High Rise Flats: Insulation

Daniel Zeichner: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, if he will issue guidance on the use of EWS1 forms so that mortgage lenders cannot insist on them for buildings under 18m.

Christopher Pincher: The EWS1 was developed by the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) in response to mortgage lender concerns about cladding on high-rise residential buildings, although the Government is aware that some lenders are requesting the assessment for lower-rise blocks. Property valuation arrangements are commercial decisions for individual lenders, but Government is supporting lenders as they review their approach to risk. The Minister for Building Safety will follow up his June lender roundtable at the end of this month to ensure that progress has been made.

Social Rented Housing: Empty Property

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, how many vacant social housing properties there are through the UK.

Christopher Pincher: Each of the countries of the United Kingdom produces its own statistics on social housing. Statistics on vacant dwellings in England and in each local authority district are published in the Ministry’s live table 615 which is available at the following link. This table shows the annual total numbers of empty homes and those vacant longer than six months and also vacants in the local authority, housing association and other public sector tenures.https://www.gov.uk/government/statistical-data-sets/live-tables-on-dwelling-stock-including-vacants

Social Rented Housing: Empty Property

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what steps his Department has taken to reduce the number of vacant social housing properties throughout the UK.

Christopher Pincher: As at March 2019, only 1.2 per cent of social homes in England were vacant. It is in the interests of social landlords to ensure that their properties are used efficiently, and that includes minimising the periods during which they are vacant and unable to generate rental income.As housing is a devolved matter, it is for the devolved administrations to decide whether and what steps to take in relation to vacant social housing in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.

Social Rented Housing: Coronavirus

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, if his Department will issue guidance to local authorities on the deep cleaning of social housing properties between the attendance of different contractors working on those properties to allow for faster turnaround times between those contractors to enable those properties to more swiftly be made available to new tenants during the covid-19 outbreak.

Christopher Pincher: Existing guidance in England is clear that where workforce is available and resources allow, there is no reason why landlords should not undertake work on empty and void properties to prepare them for being let to new tenants. When undertaking such work, landlords should follow relevant guidance on social distancing in the workplace, available at: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/working-safely-during-coronavirus-covid-19 . The Northern Ireland Executive is responsible for the preparation of any guidance for landlords and tenants in Northern Ireland.

Social Rented Housing: Locks and Keys

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government,  if his Department will issue guidance to local authorities to encourage use of bluetooth key safes in the social housing sector to provide contactless exchange of keys between (a) contractors, (b) local authority personnel and (c) tenants.

Christopher Pincher: On 13 May the Government issued new guidance on moving homes which provides important public health information to ensure that moving home and key activities around this can happen safely. This includes advice to social landlords about the allocation of social housing which recognises that practices will need to be altered in line with the guidance, including in relation to inspections for vacating tenants, collecting returned keys, conducting viewings and tenancy sign-ups, and preparing homes to be re-let.On 7 April the Chartered Institute of Housing published a practice guide for social landlords on managing lettings and empty homes which includes advice on the use of key safes as a secure and contact-free way of handling keys during the vacancy process.

Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government: Apprentices

Robert Halfon: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what steps his Department is taking to reach the public sector apprenticeship target.

Luke Hall: Since the introduction of the public sector apprenticeship target in April 2017 my Department has offered a range of apprenticeships across 7 different standards and frameworks. We have participated in external recruitment campaigns to appoint apprentices, including the Civil Service Fast Track Apprenticeship Scheme and cross-government Policy Apprenticeship campaigns. We also hold an annual Apprenticeship Week each year within the Department to promote the benefits of apprenticeships and have converted a number of existing Civil Servants to become apprentices, including within our HR Profession.

Homelessness

Neil Coyle: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, when the Government plans to publish its preliminary findings of the three regional Housing First pilots in (a) Greater Manchester, (b) the West Midlands and (c) the Liverpool City Region.

Luke Hall: Housing First has an impressive international record in helping people with complex needs to recover and stay off the streets for good, which is why we awarded £28 million to pilot it in three urban areas with contrasting challenges (the West Midlands, Greater Manchester and Liverpool City Region) with the aim to support our most vulnerable people off the streets and into safe and secure homes.We commissioned a consortium, led by ICF, to conduct a comprehensive evaluation of the programme, which will run for the duration of the pilots. We recognise that rough sleeping is a nationwide challenge, and that is why it is important that we consider the findings of our evaluation, together with our experiences from the three pilots, to ensure that we know how it could work best on a larger scale. We will be publishing an interim report on our findings in due course.

Property Development: Recreation Spaces

Stuart Anderson: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what steps the Government is taking to ensure new builds in city centres are well connected with green spaces.

Christopher Pincher: The National Planning Policy Framework encourages development that promotes health and well-being and provides a high standard of amenity for existing and future users. The Framework is clear that planning policies should assess the need for different types of open space in each area, and then seek to accommodate it. In addition, the National Design Guide shows how high quality and attractive open spaces can be integral to new development, to encourage physical activity and promote health, well-being and social inclusion, and local areas should consider this is drawing up plans for their city centres.

High Rise Flats: Fire Prevention

Mr Jonathan Lord: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what steps he is taking to incentivise the removal of dangerous materials from high-rise buildings.

Christopher Pincher: The Government has made £1.6 billion of funding available for the removal of unsafe cladding systems. We have also put in place additional project management support with construction expertise to help support individual projects and oversee remediation, so there is no excuse for delay. Where building owners are failing to make acceptable progress on remediation, those responsible should expect enforcement action to be taken by local authorities and Fire and Rescue Services. The Government established a Joint Inspection Team to support local authorities in taking enforcement action.

Derelict Land

Mr Jonathan Lord: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what steps he is taking to support housebuilding on brownfield land.

Christopher Pincher: I’m delighted that the Prime Minister recently announced that seven Mayoral Combined Authorities are each receiving a share of the £400 million Brownfield Housing Fund. This will help unlock 26,000 homes by bringing under-utilised brownfield land back into use and contribute to the levelling-up our country.

Energy Performance Certificates

Richard Fuller: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, how many and what proportion of dwellings have a valid Energy Performance Certificate.

Christopher Pincher: On 31 March 2020, the published quarterly statistics recorded a total of 20,485,644 Energy Performance Certificates (EPC) for dwellings in England and Wales. This information is available at: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistical-data-sets/live-tables-on-energy-performance-of-buildings-certificatesThe published data may contain more than one EPC for a property where multiple assessments have been undertaken and no estimate has been made of the proportion of dwellings in England and Wales with a valid EPC.

Energy Performance Certificates

Richard Fuller: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, how many dwellings have a valid Energy Performance Certificate at each rating level  in each local authority area as at 15 July 2020.

Christopher Pincher: On 30 April 2020, the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) published quarterly statistics which recorded a total of 20,485,644 Energy Performance Certificates for dwellings in England and Wales. Table LA1 gives a further breakdown of domestic Energy Performance Certificates (EPCs) for all dwellings in each local authority, by energy efficiency rating. This information is available at: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistical-data-sets/live-tables-on-energy-performance-of-buildings-certificates The current publication provides statistics up to the end of the first quarter of 2020. Subsequent statistical releases covering the second and third quarters of 2020 will be published at the end of July and October, respectively. These releases will be available via the same link as above.

Energy Performance Certificates

Richard Fuller: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what estimate he has made of the average cost of upgrading a dwelling from Energy Performance Certificate (a) Band F to Band D, (b) Band E to Band D and (c) Band D to Band C.

Christopher Pincher: The department has not modelled estimates for the average cost of upgrading dwellings from Energy Performance Certificate (EPC) Band F to Band D, Band E to Band D and Band D to Band C.The average notional cost for implementing all recommended energy efficiency measures in F or G band dwellings was £26,891.The average notional cost for implementing all recommended energy efficiency measures in A to E band dwellings was £13,347.

Homelessness

Ian Lavery: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what plans he is putting in place to ensure that there is no increase in homelessness as a result of the reintroduction of late rent evictions.

Luke Hall: The Government has taken unprecedented action to support renters during the pandemic. On 5 June we announced that the suspension of evictions from social or private rented accommodation had been extended by a further two months. This means that no action to evict a tenant will proceed before 24 August 2020.We are supporting those at risk of homelessness, with an injection of over £6.5 billion into the welfare system. This includes increasing the Local Housing Allowance rates for Universal Credit and Housing Benefit claimants so that they are set at the 30th percentile of market rents.The Homelessness Reduction Act came into force in April 2018 and means more people are entitled to support than ever before. Local authorities and other public bodies must now work together to actively relieve people of their homelessness or prevent homelessness for people at risk, irrespective of whether they are a family or single person, the reason they are at risk, or if they have a local connection to the area. Acting earlier and for a broader range of people means more people will get the help they need before they face a homelessness crisis.

Housing: Construction

Ian Lavery: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, if he will prioritise the building of additional homes and additional homes that people on low incomes can afford to rent.

Christopher Pincher: The Government is committed to increasing the supply of social housing and has made £9 billion available through the Affordable Homes Programme to March 2022 to deliver approximately 250,000 new affordable homes in a wide range of tenures, including Social Rent.Building on this, we announced at Budget 2020 that we are investing £12 billion to build affordable homes between 2021/22 and 2025/26 and that this will deliver up to 180,000 affordable homes. This will be the biggest cash investment in affordable housing for a decade.A mix of different tenures is vital to meet the needs of a wide range of people, and allow the sector to build the right homes in the right places. Alongside affordable home ownership to help those struggling to purchase their first home, our programme also offers affordable rent and social rent homes.We will announce full details of the homes the programme will deliver in due course.

Private Rented Housing

Ian Lavery: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, if he will introduce longer minimum rental contracts to provide renters with more financial stability.

Christopher Pincher: As announced in the Queen's Speech, the Government has committed to introduce a package of reforms to deliver a better deal for renters, and a fairer and more effective rental market. A Renters’ Reform Bill will enhance renters’ security and improve protections for tenants by abolishing ‘no-fault’ evictions.The Government is committed to bringing forward legislation to abolish section 21 but such legislation must be balanced and considered to achieve the right outcomes for the sector. It is only right that providing tenants with greater security of tenure is balanced with an assurance that landlords are able to recover their properties where they have valid reasons to do so. This is vital to ensuring the future supply of good quality housing in the rented sector.We will bring forward the Renters Reform Bill as a priority once the urgencies of responding to the pandemic have passed.

Private Rented Housing: Repairs and Maintenance

Ian Lavery: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what steps his Department takes to ensure that landlords are obligated to carry out essential maintenance on private rented property in a timely manner.

Christopher Pincher: Local authorities enforce standards in privately rented homes. If they identify health and safety hazards or poor conditions, they have strong powers to oblige landlords to remedy these. Local authorities can also carry out remedial works themselves in cases where hazards are very serious or where landlords do not comply with enforcement action. We strengthened these powers in 2016 when we introduced banning orders and the rogue landlord database and gave local authorities the power to impose financial penalties of up to £30,000.We also supported the Homes (Fitness for Human Habitation) Act 2018, which empowers tenants to take their landlords to court, and extended Rent Repayment Orders. And this month our Electrical Safety Standards in the Private Rented Sector (England) Regulations came into force, providing even more protection against poor conditions.Of course, the Covid-19 outbreak has meant people are spending more time in their homes, so standards are more important than ever. That’s why we’ve written comprehensive, common-sense guidance for tenants, landlords and local authorities to help everyone ensure rented homes are safe as possible during this difficult time. We have also issued guidance on working safely in people's homes which landlords should take account of when carrying out maintenance work. We recommend that no repair or maintenance work should be carried out in any household which is self-isolating or where an individual is being shielded, unless that work is to remedy a direct risk to the safety of the household. We expect local authorities to take a pragmatic approach to enforcement that ensures tenants are kept safe and landlords are supported.

High Rise Flats: Fire Prevention

Ruth Cadbury: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what assessment he has made of the number of qualified chartered fire engineers who can carry out an EWS1 survey.

Christopher Pincher: The EWS1 process was designed by the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors to support the valuation of flats in high-rise blocks. In some cases, this will require an assessment by a fire engineer. The Institution of Fire Engineers has informed MHCLG that there are around 291 chartered fire engineers.

Fire and Rescue Services: Recruitment

Ruth Cadbury: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what steps his Department has taken to increase the number of qualified chartered fire engineers.

Christopher Pincher: MHCLG and the Home Office are working with professional bodies and industry associations to assess the capacity of the fire engineering sector and support them to develop a robust pipeline strategy. We are also working closely with the fire safety sector to develop technical guidance to support the fire risk assessment of external wall systems which will support increased capability within the wider sector and are supporting industry-led approaches to understanding fire engineering resource requirements within the sector.

Fire and Rescue Services: Training

Ruth Cadbury: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what discussions he has had with ministerial colleagues at the Department for Business, Energy, Industry and Skills on additional training and support for new chartered fire engineers.

Christopher Pincher: MHCLG and the Home Office are working closely with the fire safety sector to develop technical guidance to support the fire risk assessment of external wall systems. This guidance will support the sector to develop new training. Additionally, the industry-led Competence Steering Group will shortly publish its recommendations to increase competence within the built environment sector – including for fire engineers.

High Rise Flats: Fire Prevention

Ruth Cadbury: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether he plans to review the requirement for buildings to be above 18 metres in order to receive funding under the Building Safety Fund.

Christopher Pincher: Dame Judith Hackitt and other experts have recommended that we focus further public funding on remediating unsafe cladding from high rise buildings. Higher rise buildings are the least likely to safely evacuate in the event of a fire spreading via external cladding.   There will be a small degree of flexibility to allow the fund to cover buildings that have been built just under the 18 metres threshold and have similar fire safety strategies as those above 18 metres.

Construction: Coronavirus

Dr Matthew Offord: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what estimate he has made of the effect of the covid-19 outbreak on economic supply chains of the (a) construction industry and (b) residential property purchase sector.

Christopher Pincher: The COVID-19 outbreak has had a significant effect on the housing market and the Government has taken unprecedented measures to help those facing challenges, from supporting the construction sector to re-opening the housing market.The Government continues to work closely with the construction sector following the outbreak to ensure that it is in a position to support the economic recovery. This includes the work of the Construction Leadership Council’s Coronavirus Task Force, which has established a product availability working group comprised of product manufacturers, builders’ merchants and suppliers, contractors of all sizes, and housebuilders. The Task Force continues to monitor the supply of products, and is working to address any disruption to supply chains.To support the property sector and home buyers the Government has: amended the regulations on moving home, issued guidance to help people move safely, and temporarily cut Stamp Duty Land Tax for home buyers until the end of the financial year.

Business Premises: Rents

Sarah Olney: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what plans his Department has to support commercial tenants with rent arrears, who are otherwise running a viable business, when the moratorium on evictions is lifted as covid-19 restrictions are eased.

Christopher Pincher: As you know the Government extended the commercial tenant protections until the 30 September, and we are currently reviewing what actions need to be taken after this date to ensure that landlords and tenants work together to protect viable businesses in light of the Coronavirus pandemic. We will announce our plans in due course.On 19 June, we published a code of practice to encourage commercial tenants and landlords to help commercial landlords and tenants map out plans for economic recovery during the Coronavirus pandemic.Developed in close collaboration between government and leaders from the sector, the code is designed to provide clarity for businesses when discussing rental payments and to encourage best practice so that every part of the chain is supported.

Housing: Construction

Jane Hunt: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, if he will make an assessment of the potential merits of suspending the five-year housing land supply for 12 months due to the effect that the covid-19 outbreak has had on (a) new build starts and (b) the ability of local planning authorities to meet that supply.

Christopher Pincher: I note the concerns you raise regarding demonstrating a 5 year land supply under current circumstances. However, it is important to keep the planning system moving to enable it to play its full part in the economic recovery to come and we will continue to monitor the situation.As the Prime Minister set out on 30 June, home building will play an important role in kick-starting economic recovery across the United Kingdom. The Government announced a package of measures to support this recovery, including strong investment in infrastructure and support for smaller developers to boost the construction industry and speed up rebuilding.In addition, the Business and Planning Act 2020, will support local authorities in delivering new housing, through measures such as allowing more flexible working hours on construction sites, to ensure that work can continue on sites whilst workers adhere to safe working practices, and extending the duration of certain planning permissions (and listed building consents) to ensure that they don’t lapse unnecessarily as a result of disruption caused by COVID-19.

Private Rented Housing: Social Security Benefits

Sir Edward Davey: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, if he will bring forward legislative proposals to prevent landlords from refusing to accept tenants in receipt of benefit payments.

Christopher Pincher: We are clear that ‘No DSS’ -- or any blanket ban on tenants on the basis that they are in receipt of benefits -- has no place in a modern housing market.We strongly encourage landlords and agents to look at all potential and existing tenants claiming housing benefit on an individual basis, and have worked with the sector to find ways to prevent the practice of 'No DSS'. Last year major lettings portals Zoopla and Rightmove agreed to stop use of 'No DSS' adverts on their websites, and several major lenders agreed to remove restrictions on mortgages which prevented landlords from letting to tenants on benefits.We have no plans at present to introduce legislation on this issue but are committed to bringing forward a Renters Reform Bill in due course, to deliver a better deal for renters and a fairer and more effective rental market.

Members: Correspondence

Afzal Khan: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, when he plans to respond the letter of 29 May 2020 from the hon. Member for Manchester, Gorton on the Right to Buy and Right to Acquire.

Christopher Pincher: My response to the Hon Member's letter was issued by email on 15 July.

Affordable Housing: Construction

Mike Amesbury: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, over what time period Homes England's target of at least 130,000 affordable housing starts applies.

Christopher Pincher: The Government committed to increasing the supply of social housing and made £9 billion available through the Affordable Homes Programme to March 2022.The existing Affordable Homes Programme has been extended by one year and homes have to be started by March 2023.This will save homes that would otherwise have been lost following site closures due to Covid-19.

Affordable Housing: Construction

Mike Amesbury: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, when he plans to publish further details of the next affordable homes programme.

Christopher Pincher: Our £12 billion investment in affordable homes will deliver at least 180,000 affordable homes and will be the biggest cash investment in affordable housing for over a decade.Further details on the new Affordable Homes Programme will be announced in due course

Neighbourhood Development Plans: Coronavirus

James Cartlidge: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what assessment he has made of the legal status of a neighbourhood plan that has reached referendum stage but the vote has not taken place due to covid-19 social distancing rules; and if he will make a statement.

Christopher Pincher: The delay to referendums will be frustrating for communities that have dedicated significant time and effort to the neighbourhood planning process and naturally want their plans to come into force as soon as possible. With this in mind, Government planning guidance ( https://www.gov.uk/guidance/neighbourhood-planning--2#covid-19 ) was updated in May to set out that neighbourhood plans awaiting referendums can be given significant weight in decision-making.

Ministry of Defence

Iraq: Detainees

John Healey: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, pursuant to the Answer of 14 July 2020 to Question 70307 on Ministry of Defence: Iraq Detainees, how many of the 1000 civil claims have reached an agreement with the claimant in terms of damages to be paid to the claimant, notwithstanding the legal costs that may not yet have been agreed and paid.

Johnny Mercer: Details of 330 of the 1,000 civil claims where an agreement with the claimant in terms of damages to be paid to the claimant, notwithstanding the legal costs that may not yet have been agreed and paid, are already in the public domain following responses provided to FOI requests received and the High Court judgment of December 2017 relating to the trials of the four lead claims in the Iraqi Civilian Litigation (ICL). Discussions between the claimants' solicitors and departmental officials with regard to the resolution of the outstanding remaining claims in the ICL have continued since early 2018, but the terms of these discussions and any outcomes remain the subject of a confidentiality agreement and we are therefore unable to provide a detailed and complete response to this question at this time. However, although the confidentiality agreement remains extant, it is hoped that we will be in a position to provide further information in relation to the remaining outstanding claims in the ICL in the near future.

Iraq: Detainees

John Healey: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, pursuant to the Answer of 14 July 2020 to Question 70307 on Ministry of Defence: Iraq Detainees, given that the Alseran judgement was handed down on 14 December 2017, when does the Ministry of Defence anticipate concluding the remaining 414 outstanding claims.

Johnny Mercer: We are unable to comment with any degree of certainty as to when the remaining 414 outstanding claims will be concluded because such conclusion is dependent on the settlement of both the damages and costs elements of the claims. Whilst discussions are ongoing with a view to agreeing a negotiated settlement of the outstanding claims, if no agreement can be reached in respect of those outstanding issues that preclude a final settlement, those outstanding issues will become the subject of further Court proceedings that could foreseeably continue until December 2021.

Iraq: Detainees

John Healey: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, pursuant to the Answer of 14 July 2020 to Question 70307 on Ministry of Defence: Iraq Detainees, how many of the judicial claims resolved  in the claimant’s favour, either by (a) settlement or (b) at a final hearing.

Johnny Mercer: As explained in the answer to Question 70307, only a few of the approximately 1,400 judicial reviews brought on behalf of Iraqi nationals were resolved by the time Public Interest Lawyers went into administration in 2016. None were settled by the Ministry of Defence.The Courts have only handed down judgments, following hearings, in nine cases (although some of these proceedings covered multiple complainants). Of these, six were decided in the complainants' favour; one was decided wholly in favour of the Ministry of Defence; and in the remaining two cases, the complainants won certain issues and the Ministry of Defence others.

Iraq: Detainees

John Healey: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, pursuant to the Answer of 14 July 2020 to Question 70307 on Ministry of Defence: Iraq Detainees, of the remaining cases of the 1500 judicial review claims, how many of those claimants were notified that the investigations have been completed (a) before, and (b) after 13 April 2020.

Johnny Mercer: The firm Public Interest Lawyers submitted approximately 1,400 judicial reviews by Iraqi nationals seeking an ECHR-compliant investigation into alleged violations of Article 2 (right to life) or Article 3 (prohibition of torture and ill-treatment).Judicial reviews are separate from initial criminal investigations. All cases in which there were allegations of criminality were referred to the Service police. The Service police have been notifying complainants appropriately of the outcome of these investigative steps: those whose allegations are screened out at the pre-investigation stage, are notified online; those whose cases proceed to an investigation are notified by letter once that stage is complete.The Ministry of Defence is required to consider whether those investigative steps have been sufficient to discharge any investigative obligations that may arise under ECHR, and to notify the complainant of this decision.By 13 April 2020, the Ministry of Defence had notified around 630 complainants (those whose criminal allegations had resulted in the Service police producing a final report summarising the investigative steps taken) of its decision not to establish a further non-criminal investigation. The Ministry of Defence is working as quickly as possible to ensure that all remaining complainants in this category are notified by the end of this year.

Veterans: Suicide

Stephen Morgan: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what assessment he has made of the potential effect of recording veteran suicide on the ability to track the wellbeing of troops who have served in specific theatres.

Johnny Mercer: The Government takes the welfare of Service personnel and veterans very seriously. Whilst we recognise that suicide affects wider society, not just the Armed Forces, any such death is one too many and a tragedy for all concerned. Suicide data for veterans of the UK Armed Forces is not currently captured by the Government. However, the Ministry of Defence (MOD), alongside the Office for Veterans Affairs within the Cabinet Office, are working to improve data collection of the veteran community, as envisioned by the ‘Strategy for our Veterans’. While suicide remains a rare event in the UK Armed Forces, a better understanding of suicide in the veteran community has the potential to provide insights into the wellbeing of serving personnel who served in specific theatres. The MOD has commissioned a new study to investigate causes of death, including suicide, amongst all those who served in the UK Armed Forces between 2001 and 2014, covering combat operations in Iraq and Afghanistan, encompassing veterans and those still serving:https://www.gov.uk/government/news/new-study-into-iraq-and-afghanistan-veterans-launched. MOD officials are continuing to work with colleagues in NHS Digital, the Health Research Authority and National Records Scotland and are hopeful that the initial report will be published later this year. In 2019 the then Secretary of State for Defence directed that this study be extended to include all veterans who served after 2014, now and into the future. The MOD will, therefore, be able to track the impact of future deployments on the health of Service personnel both whilst serving and as veterans:https://www.gov.uk/government/news/defence-secretary-calls-for-veteran-led-support-to-be-at-the-heart-of-mental-health-services The MOD also publishes studies on the causes of death, including suicide, of veterans from the 1982 Falklands war: (https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/causes-of-deaths-among-the-uk-armed-forces-veterans-of-the-1982-falklands-campaign) and from the 1990/91 Gulf war: (https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/causes-of-deaths-that-occurred-among-the-uk-veterans-of-the-199091-gulf-conflict). Both studies show that the suicide rates amongst veterans were lower than comparative rates in the civilian population. Annual statistics on suicides among the UK Regular Armed Forces are published at the following link: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/uk-armed-forces-suicide-and-open-verdict-deaths-index

RAF Valley: Housing

Virginia Crosbie: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, with reference to his Department's News story of 17 July 2020 entitled £200-million announced for vital improvements to troops' accommodation, if he will allocate a portion of that funding to RAF Valley to support personnel visiting for short training stints thereby making sourcing accommodation challenging.

Jeremy Quin: The funding allocated to the Royal Air Force as part of this announcement will be prioritised to improve existing accommodation across its estate. No current requirement has been identified for additional accommodation to support visiting personnel at RAF Valley.

Armed Forces: Bereavement Counselling

Mrs Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, if he will hold discussions with the Secretary of State for Education on the potential merits of including all bereaved armed services children in the Virtual Schools framework as set out in the Scotty’s Little Soldiers' Abeona pilot project in partnership with Norfolk County Council.

Johnny Mercer: I am grateful for the excellent support that Scotty's Little Soldiers provides to bereaved Service children. When I met with Scotty's Little Soldiers, on 4 February 2020, I was heartened to hear about their work, including the Abeona pilot programme.While the Ministry of Defence (MOD) has no plans to discuss this matter with the Department for Education, MOD officials are engaged with Scotty's Little Soldiers and partners at the local level to understand the benefits of the programme in Norfolk and to learn whether this might be more widely applicable.

Armed Forces: Females

Mrs Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many female armed forces service personnel were (a) absent without leave (b) charged with desertion or (c) registered with military and civilian police as a missing person in each year since 2015.

Johnny Mercer: The information available on female Armed Forces Service personnel who have been absent without leave (AWOL) or charged with desertion in each of the last five years is provided in the tables below. The Ministry of Defence holds no information on missing persons in the United Kingdom as this is a matter for the civilian police forces. There are no records of any female Service personnel being reported to the Service Police as a missing person overseas in the last five years. YearRecorded AWOL201552016~20170201852019~2020 (as at 21 July)~ YearCharged with Desertion2015~2016~2017020180201902020 (as at 21 July)0  Notes:Figures have been rounded to the nearest 5 to preserve anonymity. Where the number is less than 5, the symbol ~ has been used. All figures are single Service estimates and are not official statistics produced by Defence Statistics. The AWOL figures in the table are for the number of AWOL offences reported, not thenumber of personnel who have gone AWOL. An individual may be recorded as AWOL more than once in this time period. The figures for Recorded AWOL and Desertion charges have been compiled from different sources and have not been cross-checked.

Department for Work and Pensions

Poverty: Children

Jon Trickett: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many children were living in poverty in (a) Hemsworth constituency, (b) Wakefield Council area and (c) West Yorkshire Combined Authority area as at (i) 15 July 2010 and (ii) 15 July 2020.

Will Quince: National Statistics on the number and percentage of children in low income are published annually in the “Households Below Average Income” publication. The rates of children in absolute poverty in the Yorkshire and the Humber region in the three years to 18/19 has decreased, both before and after housing costs, compared to the three years to 09/10. Latest statistics for the number of children who are in low income for England and the Yorkshire and the Humber region can be found at https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/households-below-average-income-199495-to-201819, “children-hbai-timeseries-1994-95-2018-19-tables” in table 4.17ts (relative low income, before and after housing costs) and 4.23ts (absolute low income, before and after housing costs). The Department now publishes supplementary official statistics on the number of children in low income families at constituency level. Children in Low Income Families data is published annually. The latest figures from 2014/15 to 2018/19 can be found at: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/children-in-low-income-families-local-area-statistics-201415-to-201819

Unemployment: Young People

Jon Trickett: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many unemployment young people there are in (a) Hemsworth constituency, (b) Wakefield Council area and (c) West Yorkshire Combined Authority area.

Mims Davies: Estimates of the number of people who are unemployed are compiled by the Office for National Statistics (ONS) using the Annual Population Survey (APS), a large household survey. Estimates are based on a sample of cases and therefore subject to sampling uncertainty. Estimates at sub-regional geographies such as local authorities and parliamentary constituencies or sub-groups such as unemployed young people are especially uncertain. New figures were released on 16 July 2020 for the April 2019 - March 2020 survey period on the NOMIS website. (https://www.nomisweb.co.uk/)

Universal Credit

Neil Coyle: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, with reference to the National Audit Office report entitled Universal Credit: getting to first payment, published 10 July 2020, what steps her Department is taking to reduce fraud and error in universal credit claims.

Will Quince: The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) takes the issue of fraud and error extremely seriously and continues to implement new initiatives to tackle it. The National Audit Office (NAO) report (Universal Credit: getting to first payment) recognises at paragraph 2.23, that DWP and Her Majesty’s Revenue and Customs (HMRC) categorise fraud and error differently. Under the Tax Credit regime, HMRC makes a provisional award to claimants based on the information it holds and then calculates their actual entitlement after the end of the year. Any overpayment, due to a change in the claimant’s income during the year, does not count as fraud and error. Therefore, it is not possible to compare directly with Universal Credit. NAO also acknowledge that DWP’s fraud and error levels were always going to increase as claimants migrate from Tax Credits (administered by HMRC) onto Universal Credit. DWP maintains that Universal Credit is better designed than the benefits it replaces and that, once in steady state, we still expect it to lead to savings in fraud and error and overpayments across welfare. As the NAO reported at paragraph 2.24 of their report there are net fraud savings from the introduction of Universal Credit to the Exchequer of £62m in 2018/19. Prior to the COVID-19 pandemic we were making increased use of data and analytics as part of our approach to combatting fraud and error. We further optimised this capability following the outbreak of the pandemic by bringing together a number of intelligence teams from across the Department to create our Integrated Risk and Intelligence Service (IRIS). You will appreciate that it is not possible to describe the mechanics used by these teams without potentially compromising their effectiveness. However, by continuing to work across Government and with existing third party suppliers, IRIS helps to ensure a joined up approach to tackling fraud and error. In addition, the verification of new claimants’ identities has remained at the core of the checks DWP undertakes before new claims are processed. Whilst DWP’s COVID-19 response has necessitated the removal of face to face contact with all but our most vulnerable customers, we have reduced the fraud and error risks this might pose, by introducing new and robust verification procedures. This includes the use of unique biographical questions (questions based on information DWP already holds about an individual), uploading ID documentation, and where appropriate, seeking additional verification via our newly established Enhanced Checking Service.

Universal Credit

Neil Coyle: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what estimate her Department has made of the cost to the public purse of ending the five-week wait for a first universal credit payment.

Will Quince: It is not possible to award a Universal Credit payment as soon as a claim is made, as the assessment period must run its course before entitlement to Universal Credit can be calculated. Advances allow new claimants to request additional support during the first assessment period. Advances can be repaid over a year, allowing new claimants to receive 13 payments during that period instead of 12. We have temporarily increased the Standard Allowance by £86.67 a month (equivalent to £20 per week, or £1040 per year). For many claimants, this additional amount will cover the average £54 per month advance repayment. A non-repayable grant at the outset of a claim would potentially increase fraud and error levels and become susceptible to organised criminal activity. It may also encourage more speculative UC claims, potentially repeatedly, in order to access funds.

Food Banks

Mark Tami: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether each instance of Jobcentre Plus staff signposting claimants to local food banks is recorded on a claimant's case record.

Will Quince: Jobcentre staff are not required to keep records of the numbers of claimants signposted to food banks in their local area; however, in line with long-standing national guidance, they may record the issue of signposting slips for authentication purposes at the request of the local food bank.

Food Banks

Mark Tami: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether the signposting of claimants to local food banks is in the form of (a) pieces of paper, (b) other written communication, or (c) verbal communication; and whether any written communication provided is directly transferable at a food bank for food.

Will Quince: The decision to award a food parcel is a matter for the food bank alone. The Department for Work and Pensions has long-standing guidance in place which allows staff to signpost claimants in writing to a food bank, using a nationally agreed signposting slip, where claimants have asked for information, and if all sources of statutory support have been exhausted. During the Covid-19 outbreak, Jobcentres have been encouraged to take a flexible and innovative approach in their arrangements for signposting claimants to foodbanks, within the parameters of the existing guidance.

Jobcentres: Staff

Neil Gray: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment she has made of the number of new Job Centres required to be opened to accommodate the work coaches announced in the Summer Financial Statement in (a) Scotland, (b) the UK and (c) Airdrie and Shotts.

Mims Davies: We are currently evaluating how many new jobcentres we will need to respond to the economic consequences of the Covid pandemic. Further details will be provided to Parliament when our plans have been finalised.

Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

Flood Control: Worksop

Brendan Clarke-Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps he is taking to improve flood defences in and around Worksop to prevent a repeat of the November 2019 floods.

Rebecca Pow: Worksop was significantly affected by flooding in the November 2019 floods. In total 128 residential properties and 180 businesses, a mix of small to large, including the bus depot and main Post Office were unfortunately flooded. Since then the Environment Agency has met with residents and has been working with professional partners to ensure Worksop is more resilient to any future floods. On our ability to respond to flooding, the Environment Agency has met with Nottinghamshire County Council, Bassetlaw District Council and the Canal and Rivers Trust to review our capability within Worksop and the surrounding area. This review will ensure better coordination of all flood assets on the ground to maximise the effectiveness of our collective incident response. To improve flood defences, since November 2019 the Environment Agency has reviewed the maintenance regime to the River Ryton at Worksop and associated flood risk assets, and undertaken routine works in the area. The Environment Agency has also undertaken enhanced maintenance in the Worksop area, including silt removal, tree maintenance and blockage removal. The Environment Agency is also currently producing a River Ryton Catchment Flood Model that will: Consider future flood risk options for Worksop and the area, including the potential for future capital investment. Work to consider what viable options are available will commence in 2021.Improve local Flood Warning Service for WorksopProvide more detailed information for the public and the Government's professional partners to assist in the preparation and response to flood risk. The development of any capital intervention will need to demonstrate it is technically feasible, is economically viable and can be financed in line with partnership funding rules. The Environment Agency expects the modelling to begin delivering outputs by the end of 2020 which will then be used to develop the above flood risk improvements. We will continue to work with our partners to ensure Worksop is resilient in the future.On 14 July, the Government published a long-term Policy Statement setting out our plan to create a nation more resilient to future flood and coastal erosion risk. The Policy Statement outlines five ambitious policies and over 40 supporting actions which will accelerate progress to better protect and better prepare the country against flooding and coastal erosion in the face of more frequent extreme weather as a result of climate change. Alongside the Policy Statement, the Secretary of State has laid before Parliament the Environment Agency’s updated National Flood and Coastal Erosion Risk Management Strategy for England which will provide direction to the work of risk management authorities on the ground and includes strategic objectives to improve the resilience of the nation through to 2100. Taken together, this means that our country will be significantly more resilient to flooding and coastal erosion.

Agriculture: Northern Ireland

Louise Haigh: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment he has made of the potential effect on (a) the Northern Ireland agrifood sector and (b) food prices of not reaching an SPS agreement with the EU by the end of the transition period.

Victoria Prentis: The Government works closely with the Northern Ireland Executive on devolved agri-food matters and is committed to ensuring that we maximise the opportunities for Northern Ireland having left the EU. It remains committed to a New Deal for Northern Ireland, which includes appropriate commitments to help boost economic growth and Northern Ireland’s competitiveness. The Government monitors food prices on a monthly basis through the Consumer Prices Index including Housing Costs (CPIH). The Government does not have direct control over food prices, but it constantly monitors and investigates factors and changes that can potentially have an impact on food prices. The Government works closely with the Northern Ireland Executive on devolved agri-food matters. We want a relationship with the EU which is based on friendly cooperation between sovereign equals and centred on free trade. We will continue to work closely with industry to promote transparency for consumers, and internationally to promote open and sustainable global markets.

Cats and Dogs: Coronavirus

Rosie Cooper: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if he will make an assessment of the effect of the covid-19 outbreak on trends in the level of (a) puppy farming, (b) puppy smuggling and (c) third-party sales of puppies and kittens.

Victoria Prentis: Defra is in regular contact with the companion animal welfare sector to discuss matters including dog breeding and sales activity. There has been a high level of demand for pets as more people have been staying at home during the Covid-19 outbreak. We recognise that there are risks of people buying puppies which have unknowingly been bred in poor welfare conditions whether at home or abroad. To help combat this situation, Defra launched a national Government communications campaign in March 2020, 'Petfished', to coincide with the introduction of the ban on the commercial third-party sale of puppies and kittens in England which came into force on 6 April 2020.The campaign raises awareness of the consequences of buying from a low-welfare seller and challenges the assumption that it is easy to spot bad practice. 'Petfished' also educates the public on best practice for finding a new pet and signposts individuals to resources available to help them make the right decision. We will be shortly launching the second phase of 'Petfished' this month, with the continued support of major animal welfare charities, veterinary associations and celebrities.In addition, we are fully committed to cracking down on the vile and illegal trade in pets and operate one of the most rigorous pet border checking regimes in the world. Leaving the EU provides us with the opportunity to further crack down on puppy smuggling in line with our manifesto commitment.

Cats: Tagging

Rosie Cooper: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, when he plans to bring forward legislative proposals on the compulsory microchipping of cats.

Victoria Prentis: I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave to the hon. Member for Blackpool South on 25 June 2020, PQ UIN 61621. [www.parliament.uk/business/publications/written-questions-answers-statements/written-question/Commons/2020-06-18/61621]

Animal Welfare: Coronavirus

Rosie Cooper: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if he will undertake, with representatives from the devolved Administrations, a thorough and wide-ranging assessment of the effect of the covid-19 outbreak on animal welfare throughout the UK.

Victoria Prentis: The Government in early April, along with the Scottish and Welsh Governments, commissioned the Animal Welfare Committee (AWC) to assess the risks to animal welfare as a result of Covid-19 controls. The AWC has submitted the first part of its report which was published on 4 June 2020 and is available at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/awc-opinion-on-the-animal-welfare-issues-related-to-covid-19. The AWC is currently considering the potential medium to long-term impact on animal welfare as a consequence of Covid-19 restrictions. We expect to receive that report, and for it to be published, in early autumn.

Marine Environment: Pollution Control

Mr Jonathan Lord: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps he is taking to reduce pollution in the marine environment.

Rebecca Pow: The UK Government is committed to leading efforts to protect the marine environment from all stressors.The UK Marine Strategy Part 3 published in December 2015, sets out a comprehensive list of actions the UK Government is taking to reduce contaminant concentrations in the marine environment to acceptable levels. In 2021 we intend to publish an update to the document, outlining the programmes of measures that will continue to move us towards Good Environmental Status in our seas. Existing measures include various pollution reduction requirements for emissions and discharges from industry, and measures for coastal waters that are set out in the River Basin Management Plans.The UK Government is also tackling pollution from solid waste at its source. The Resources and Waste Strategy for England, published in December 2018, sets out our plans to eliminate all avoidable plastic waste, working towards our 25 Year Environment Plan target to reduce all types of marine plastic pollution.Given the trans-boundary nature of the marine environment, we work closely with other countries to tackle pollution, such as with those who share our seas through the OSPAR Convention. The UK also contributes to and implements the obligations of several global initiatives, including the London Protocol and the London Convention, to protect the marine environment from mercury, persistent organic pollutants, hazardous wastes, hazardous chemicals, pesticides and marine litter. In 2018, the UK launched the Commonwealth Clean Ocean Alliance alongside Vanuatu, now a community of 34 member states who have pledged action on reducing plastic pollution in the ocean. As per the Government’s manifesto commitment, the UK will establish a £500 million Blue Planet Fund that will help eligible countries protect their marine resources from key human-generated threats, including pollution.

Waste Disposal: Crime

Mr Jonathan Lord: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps he is taking to tackle waste crime.

Rebecca Pow: Waste crime blights both local communities and the environment and we are committed to tackling it. We have given the Environment Agency an extra £60 million to tackle waste crime since 2014.Our Resources and Waste Strategy (RWS) sets out our approach to preventing, detecting and deterring waste crime. The Environment Bill takes forward a number of these measures, including powers to introduce the mandatory electronic tracking of waste and enhanced enforcement powers for regulators and local authorities. The RWS is available at: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/765914/resources-waste-strategy-dec-2018.pdfIn January 2020, the Joint Unit for Waste Crime (JUWC) was launched - a taskforce dedicated to tackling serious and organised criminality in the waste sector, including large-scale illegal dumping and false labelling of waste. It brings together the EA, the National Crime Agency, the police, HMRC, Natural Resources Wales and the Scottish Environment Protection Agency in a UK-wide effort to share intelligence and resources. To tackle the growing trend in criminal waste networks, the new unit will conduct site inspections, make arrests and prosecutions and, upon conviction, push for heavy fines and custodial sentences.

Environment Protection

Mr Jonathan Lord: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what recent progress he has made on implementing the Government's 25 Year Environment Plan.

Rebecca Pow: In June the Government published its second 25 Year Environment Plan Progress Report. This second report describes where progress has been made towards achieving the long-term vision of the plan. It also highlights the challenges that still remain in improving the environment within a generation and which we are committed to addressing.In the last 12 months we have taken significant steps forward in delivering our environmental commitments outlined in our 25 Year Environment Plan. We became the first major economy to legislate for net zero and underlining our commitment to achieving this target, we launched a consultation on bringing forward the end to the sale of new petrol and diesel vehicles to 2035, or earlier if a faster transition appears feasible, including hybrids for the first time. We have also taken action to conserve our marine environment, including by designating the third tranche of 41 new Marine Conservation Zones in May 2019. We are also investing £640 million in a new Nature for Climate Fund to support woodland creation and peatland restoration. Action under each of the goal areas of the 25 Year Environment Plan is set out in the report.A major step in implementing our environmental ambition has been bringing forward the first Environment Bill for more than 20 years to help leave the environment in a better state than that in which we found it. The Bill, alongside our strengthened Agriculture and Fisheries Bills, sets a new legal foundation for government action to improve the environment. It will place the environment at the heart of Government policy making and ensure that this Government – and future Governments – are held to account if they fail to uphold their environmental duties, including meeting net-zero by 2050, and wider long-term legally binding targets on biodiversity, air quality, water, and resource and waste efficiency established under the Bill.

Food: Origin Marking

Martyn Day: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what recent discussions he has had with supermarkets in the UK on providing clear labelling for the consumer on the origin of food.

Victoria Prentis: Defra officials meet retail representatives regularly and frequently to discuss delivery of food labelling rules, including those on food origin, and this is a topic of interest for the regular F4 meetings between Defra Ministers and retailers and producers. The UK maintains high standards of food label information, including on food origin labelling, through our legislation on the provision of food information to consumers. Consumers are now further protected by new rules applying from this year that require labels to inform consumers if the country or place of origin of the primary ingredient of a food is different to that of the origin stated, or implied, for the product as a whole. Our major retailers have been at the forefront over recent years in providing clear origin information on food to customers. Along with major manufacturers, they implemented a voluntary agreement, supported by Defra Ministers, on the origin of meat and dairy ingredients in food which has resulted in their meat and dairy products carrying accurate origin information for meat and dairy ingredients. These rules will remain in place when the Transition Period ends on 31 December this year.

Beverage Containers: Recycling

Mark Pawsey: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what advice Public Health England has given on the introduction of a deposit returns scheme following the covid-19 outbreak on the (a) manual handling of scheme materials, and (b) the operation of reverse vending machines; and if he will make a statement.

Rebecca Pow: The Government committed in its manifesto to introduce a deposit return scheme (DRS) for drinks containers. Since consulting on its introduction in 2019, we have been developing proposals for a DRS using further evidence and ongoing engagement with stakeholders. We are liaising with Public Health England (PHE) to consider any impact that Covid-19 may have on the development of a DRS for drinks containers. Advice from PHE will be considered in the development of proposals, which will be presented in a second consultation in early 2021.

Tree Planting: Schools

Stuart Anderson: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what plans he has to encourage tree planting in schools.

Rebecca Pow: Since 2016 our Trees for Schools programme, delivered in partnership with the Woodland Trust and England’s Community Forests, has given hundreds of thousands of primary aged school children the chance to plant, care for and learn about trees. Over 1 million new trees have been planted in school grounds and communities, often in our most urban and deprived communities. This contributes to our 25 Year Environment Plan commitment to connect more people with nature. We are currently consulting on a new England Tree Strategy and would welcome views as part of that on what more we can do to connect people, especially children, with trees and woodlands in the future. https://consult.defra.gov.uk/forestry/england-tree-strategy/

Air Pollution: Coronavirus

Karin Smyth: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 3 July 2020 to Question 64952 on Air Pollution: Coronavirus, what further studies he has (a) commissioned or (b) plans to commission on the association between covid-19 and air pollution; and if he will make it his policy to publish those studies.

Rebecca Pow: The Air Quality Expert Group (AQEG) report provides an early snapshot of evidence (pre-April 30 2020) and is an important component of Defra's response to COVID-19 and strategic leadership to improving air quality in the UK. A detailed follow-up by AQEG in the form of a more traditional review of the peer reviewed evidence will follow when more is known on the impact of the pandemic on air quality.Defra continues to have extensive discussions with DHSC and the research community, on the relationship between air quality and health. We are committed to improving our understanding of the possible links between air quality and COVID-19, to inform policy development and will publish any studies at an appropriate time.I welcome the EFRA Committee Inquiry into Air Quality, and we will be submitting further information about work on the links between air pollution and Covid-19 in our response to the call for evidence.

Air Pollution: Urban Areas

Charlotte Nichols: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what plans he has to improve air quality in towns and city centres.

Rebecca Pow: Our Clean Air Strategy sets out an ambitious programme of action to reduce air pollution from a wide range of sources in our towns and cities. We have also put in place a £3.5 billion plan to tackle roadside nitrogen dioxide concentrations. Our Environment Bill makes a clear commitment to set a legally binding target to reduce fine particulate matter and enables greater local action by ensuring responsibility for tackling air pollution is shared across local government structures and with relevant public authorities. We are also strengthening the ability of local authorities to tackle smoke emissions from domestic solid fuel burning, which is a major source of fine particulate matter. Under the Local Air Quality Management Framework, local authorities review and assess local air quality and are required to declare an Air Quality Management Area (AQMA) if local monitoring indicates exceedance of legal air quality standards and objectives, and are then required to develop an Air Quality Action Plan (AQAP) to address the exceedance. Warrington Borough Council (WBC) has declared two AQMAs in the district, both for exceedances of the NO2 annual mean. As part of its AQAP, WBC is encouraging uptake of low emission vehicles and active travel. Defra has this year awarded £87,350 from the Air Quality Grant to WBC to run an electric taxi scheme.

Home Office

Immigration: EU Nationals

Patrick Grady: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether it is her Department's policy that time spent outside the UK as a result of quarantine measures imposed in response to the covid-19 pandemic is counted against continuous residence in the UK for the purposes of the EU Settlement Scheme.

Patrick Grady: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether time spent outside the UK as a result of the covid-19 pandemic will qualify for the important reason exemption from the requirement for continuous residence in the UK to qualify for settled status under the EU Settlement Scheme.

Kevin Foster: In line with the EU law rights protected by the Withdrawal Agreement, the EU Settlement Scheme permits an applicant to have an absence (or absences) from the UK of up to six months in any 12-month period. It also allows for a single absence of up to 12 months in the period of five years’ continuous residence generally required for settled status under the scheme where that absence is for an important reason. This includes serious illness and would cover, for example, absence required by being quarantined to protect public health. Further guidance for applicants to the scheme who have been affected by illness or travel restrictions due to Covid-19 will be published shortly.

Visas: Sponsorship

Neil Coyle: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what estimate she has made of the number of sponsor licence applications that will be required ahead of the implementation of the proposed new points-based immigration system; and what steps her Department is taking to anticipate any surge in licence applications.

Neil Coyle: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what plans she has to (a) issue guidance and (b) change operating procedures to manage any increase in the number of sponsor licence applications before the implementation of the proposed new points-based immigration system in 2021.

Neil Coyle: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many additional staff her Department plans to recruit to process sponsor licence applications under the proposed new points-based immigration system.

Kevin Foster: Planning for the implementation of the new UK points-based system includes ensuring that all aspects of operational readiness have been considered and this includes resourcing, recruitment and the delivery of training.In UK Visas and Immigration, who will be delivering the new system operationally, there is a natural cycle of recruitment of caseworkers every year and this year the requirements of the new system have been factored in, including the forecast increase in sponsor licence applications.Work is underway on this and there is specific strand project planning for the overall programme in place. Progress is reported weekly and monitored by the FBIS programme board which oversees the delivery of the new system.The Impact Assessment for the Immigration and Social Security Co-ordination (EU Withdrawal) Bill included an assessment of the potential number of skilled workers that may be eligible under the new points-based immigration system, and therefore would require sponsorship. This can be found on GOV.UK: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/immigration-bill-2020-overarching-documents

Visas: Sponsorship

Neil Coyle: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps she has taken to encourage employers to apply for sponsor licences before the end of free movement and the implementation of the proposed new points-based immigration system in 2021.

Kevin Foster: It is vital that employers are prepared for implementation of the new points-based immigration system. That is why we are providing certainty and support on the system now.The Home Office has already launched a comprehensive programme of communications and engagement to help employers understand the system and how to prepare.Throughout 2019, the COVID-19 pandemic, and since the Policy Statement was published in February 2020, we have facilitated hundreds of engagement events, reaching thousands of stakeholders and continue to hold regular events across the UK and a wide range of sectors.We have published an introduction to the points-based immigration system for employers and launched a direct email campaign to enable businesses to sign-up to receive updates on the system’s implementation. Furthermore, we have and continue to work other departments across government, who are supporting the Home Office in promoting our messages to employers.A nationwide marketing campaign will roll out later this year, using a wide range of channels to reach our audiences, such as radio, video-on-demand and outdoor advertising

Immigration: Self-employed

Neil Coyle: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment she has made of the ability of people who are self-employed to come and work in the UK after 1 January 2021 under the proposed new points-based immigration system.

Kevin Foster: The UK’s Points-Based Immigration System has been designed with businesses and employers given huge consideration. Whilst there will be no dedicated route for self-employed people in the Points-based system, self-employed workers will continue to be able to benefit from a number of other routes. Those contracted to provide services to an organisation can continue to be sponsored under the new skilled work route, or if wishing to set up a business in the UK, use the Innovator and Start-up routes. Where they are recognised as a leading talent or promising individual in science, humanities, engineering, the arts (including film, fashion design and architecture) or digital technology they can use the Global Talent route which allows them to take employment without any restrictions. Further information on the Points-based system was published on 13 July and sets out the offer for those seeking to come to the UK to work.

Small Businesses: Coronavirus

Neil Coyle: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment her Department has made of the economic effect of the covid-19 outbreak on the ability of SMEs to (a) fund skilled worker visa applications and (b) access foreign labour markets after the transition period.

Kevin Foster: The Impact Assessment for the Immigration and Social Security Co-ordination (EU Withdrawal) Bill included an assessment of how Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) may be affected by the future skilled worker route. This previously published analysis did not model the additional economic effects of Covid-19 on the UK labour market; however, these effects and their impact on SME’s future engagement with the skilled worker route are highly uncertain.

Passports: Applications

Sir Mike Penning: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, when the passport office will reinstate the passport renewal service that was suspended during the covid-19 outbreak; and id will she make a statement.

Kevin Foster: Her Majesty’s Passport Office has continued to operate throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, and the processing of passport renewal applications has not ceased during this period. Face-to-face passport services were suspended on 24 March. We will determine when they will resume in due course.

Community Development

Bell Ribeiro-Addy: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, with reference to the Answer of 5 November 2019 to Questions 7211 and 7212, where National Community Engagement team meetings were held; and what sponsorship was received from the private or third sectors since January 2019.

Bell Ribeiro-Addy: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what guidance her Department has provided to the National Community Engagement team on advising people on voluntary repatriation.

Chris Philp: The events noted in PQ 7211 and 7212 were held in London, Loughborough, Bradford, Sheffield, Leeds, Wakefield, Halifax, Rotherham and Huddersfield. The National Community Engagement Team has not received any sponsorship from private or third sectors since January 2019. Guidance on voluntary return for Home Office staff is available here - https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/834061/voluntary-and-assisted-returns-v2.0.pdf. The National Community Engagement Team has attended awareness sessions/workshops delivered by the Voluntary Returns Service

Evidence: DNA

Bell Ribeiro-Addy: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, with reference to the Answer of 28 June 2019 to Question 266269 on evidence: DNA, how many people have been contacted; and how much in redress has been paid to date.

Kevin Foster: The most recent data shows that we have attempted to contact all those known to be affected by the requirement to provide DNA evidence, apart from a small number (less than 10) for whom we have been unable to establish contact details.  The most recent data on payments shows that around £340,000 has been paid and there are no requests for payment outstanding. This data is manually collated from different systems, which may not currently be up to date and would require further quality assurance before being suitable for publication by the department

Immigration: EU Nationals

Bell Ribeiro-Addy: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the Answer of 15 January 2020 to Question 1930, how many people have applied to the EU Settlement Scheme to date.

Kevin Foster: The latest published information on EU Settlement Scheme applications received can be found on the Home Office’s ‘EU Settlement Scheme statistics’ web page available at: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/eu-settlement-scheme-statisticsThe total number of applications received up to 30 June 2020 was 3.71 million (3,713,200).The published figures refer specifically to applications made to the EU Settlement Scheme and cannot be directly compared with estimates of the resident population of EU/EEA nationals in the UK. The published figures include non-EEA family members, Irish nationals, and eligible EEA citizens not resident in the UK, none of whom are usually included in estimates of the resident EU population. Furthermore, the population estimates do not take account of people’s migration intentions and will include people who have come to the UK for a range of purposes, including some who have no intention to settle in the UK.

Immigration: EU Nationals

Bell Ribeiro-Addy: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the Answer of 15 January 2020 to Question 1931, what estimate her Department has made of the number of EU citizens who are eligible for settled status but have not applied.

Kevin Foster: The latest published information on EU Settlement Scheme applications received can be found on the Home Office’s ‘EU Settlement Scheme statistics’ web page available at: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/eu-settlement-scheme-statisticsThe total number of applications received up to 30 June 2020 was 3.71 million (3,713,200).The published figures refer specifically to applications made to the EU Settlement Scheme and cannot be directly compared with estimates of the resident population of EU/EEA nationals in the UK. The published figures include non-EEA family members, Irish nationals, and eligible EEA citizens not resident in the UK, none of whom are usually included in estimates of the resident EU population. Furthermore, the population estimates do not take account of people’s migration intentions and will include people who have come to the UK for a range of purposes, including some who have no intention to settle in the UK.

British Nationality: Children

Bell Ribeiro-Addy: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the Answer of 20 January 2020 to Question 3311, what steps she is taking in response to the High Court judgement in Project for the Registration of British Citizens as Children and others v Secretary of State for the Home Department [2019] EWHC 3536 (Admin) of 19 December 2019.

Kevin Foster: The Secretary of State for the Home Department has been grantedpermission to appeal against the Court’s finding which means the caseremains on-going and we will therefore continue to charge Child Registration fees as set out in the Fees Regulations. While this court case remains active it would not be right to speculate on next steps and potential courses of action.

Undocumented Workers

Bell Ribeiro-Addy: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the Answer of 13 September 2018 to Questions 137673 and 137674, (a) what steps her Department has taken to collate the total amount paid as reimbursement for lost documents annually and (b) which part of her Department’s budget is used for these reimbursements.

Kevin Foster: For immigration applications, data on the number of times reimbursement of costs for lost documents have been paid, and the total amount paid, in the years requested, are not held centrally or published by the Home Office. We are working on the ways in which we may be able to publish this information in the future. The budget from which such payments are made is dependent on the business area liable for the loss of the document.

Home Office

Bell Ribeiro-Addy: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how much revenue her Department has received in fees from responses to e-mail enquiries about (a) border, (b) immigration and (c) citizenship services in each month since 2017 to date.

Chris Philp: SITEL UK Ltd is contracted by the Home Office to provide Contact Centre Services for both UK and International enquiries. A £5.48 email charge is levied to fund this contract as the UK government believes it is right that those who use and benefit directly from the UK immigration system make an appropriate contribution towards meeting the costs of the immigration system. Those who use the services are predominantly from outside the UK. Our web site www.gov.uk is the main source of information and advice and is free of charge. Further details of the financial arrangement in place between the Home Office and SITEL UK Ltd for the provision of these services (including the revenue received) is not available due to it being commercially sensitive

Immigrants: Surcharges

Bell Ribeiro-Addy: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the Answer of 15 January 2020 to Question 1925, if her Department will reassess charging the full immigration health surcharge to non-UK NHS staff in 2020.

Kevin Foster: The Home Secretary and Secretary of State for Health and Social Care have worked together to exempt non-UK NHS staff from the Immigration Health Surcharge. On 14 July, the Home Office published further detail regarding the Health and Care Visa. The introduction of this visa route demonstrates the Government’s commitment to deliver for the NHS and wider health and care sector. The new Health and Care Visa will come with a reduced visa application fee, fast-track entry and dedicated team to process applications. Those applying un-der the Health and Care Visa route will be exempt from paying the Immigra-tion Health Surcharge. Those who would qualify for the Health and Care visa and who paid the Sur-charge on or after 31 March will be refunded. More information will be pub-lished on the Immigration Health Surcharge gov.uk pages. All those working in the health and care sector who paid the Surcharge on or after the 31 March 2020, but who do not qualify for the Health and Care Visa will be eligible for a reimbursement of what they have paid since that date. The Minister for Health announced on 15 July that this reimbursement will be paid in arrears of six-month increments and that this scheme will be launched by 1 October 2020.

Undocumented Workers

Bell Ribeiro-Addy: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, with reference to the Answer of 13 September 2018 to Question 171417, what assessment her Department has made of the potential merits of collating information on the number of people arrested for illegal working who are transferred to an immigration removal centre.

Chris Philp: The Home Office collates information for the purposes of publishing statistics and internal management information. We regularly review the information we collate to ensure it supports these purposes.

Undocumented Migrants: English Channel

Bell Ribeiro-Addy: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the Answer of 3 February 2020 to Question 1927, for what reasons there was a sixfold increase in the number of migrants crossing the English Channel in 2019 compared to the previous year.

Chris Philp: Nobody should be making these dangerous and illegally-facilitated crossing from France to the UK. France is a safe country with a well-run asylum system. Government departments, including the Home Office and the National Crime Agency are working around the clock, in collaboration with the French Government and the relevant international law enforcement agencies to stop these illegally-facilitated crossings. We are working to identify and dismantle the organised crime groups that facilitate illegal immigration. Strengthened security at the juxtaposed controls between the UK and France has also meant it is increasingly difficult for migrants to enter the UK without permission, in line with the UK’s immigration rules, leading to more reckless attempts by boat. The UK Government has returned over 155 small boats arrivals back to Europe since January 2019 using the legal channels available.

Hate Crime: Religious Buildings

Mr Jonathan Lord: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps her Department is taking is taking to prevent hate crimes against places of worship.

Kit Malthouse: The Government is committed to protecting places of worship from hate crime through the Places of Worship Protective Security Funding Scheme. The 2020-21 round launched on 16 June with an uplift to £3.2 million- double the amount awarded last year. Over the last four years we have awarded approximately £3.4 million to 183 places of worship across England and Wales.Our public consultation on providing greater protection from hate crime for places of worship closed on 28 June. Responses are currently being reviewed, and the Government will respond in due course.

Immigrants: Health Services

Ian Lavery: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many foreign national NHS and social care workers have (a) paid and (b) been refunded the NHS surcharge since 21 May 2020.

Kevin Foster: This information is not readily available nor held centrally and could only be obtained at disproportionate cost due to the fact the IHS is payable across multiple application routes. For example, where the customer is on a visa with a general right to work and takes up employment, we do not have a record who the employer is. Since the Prime Minister’s announcement, we have been working at pace to identify and issue refunds to those customers who are eligible and hold Tier 2 (General) visas.

Retail Trade: Crimes of Violence

Ian Lavery: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, on what date she plans to publish the call for evidence on violence and abuse toward shop staff; and what plans she has to ensure that shop staff are protected against violence and abuse.

Kit Malthouse: The Government carried out a Call for Evidence on violence and abuse toward shop staff to better understand the scale of the issue and the measures which may help prevent these crimes. We published the Government response to these findings on 7 July, setting out the steps we will be taking to help drive down these crimes:https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/violence-and-abuse-toward-shop-staff-call-for-evidence

Visas: Married People

Bell Ribeiro-Addy: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many Public statement: relationship no longer subsisting forms were received by the her Department in in each month since 2016.

Chris Philp: Information regarding the number of Public Statement: Relationship No Longer Subsisting forms received in each month since 2016 is not held centrally and to obtain it would exceed the disproportionate cost threshold.

Visas: Married People

Bell Ribeiro-Addy: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many (a) arrests, and (b) deportations have been made as a result of Public statement: relationship no longer subsisting forms received by the Home Office since 2016.

Chris Philp: We do not routinely publish the information you have requested, we are unable to provide this information, as it could only be obtained at disproportionate cost.

Immigration: Reviews

Bell Ribeiro-Addy: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many reviews her Department is undertaking into immigration policy; and what the topic is of each of those reviews.

Kevin Foster: As we have previously set out, immigration policy is under continual review and we are working to implement the new immigration system once we end free movement on 31 December 2020.

Immigration

Bell Ribeiro-Addy: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department,  pursuant to the Answer of 11 September 2018 to Question 171416 on Immigration, what progress her Department made on reviewing the management information held on administrative reviews and publishing this information in future.

Chris Philp: The Home Office will consider the future publication of data and service standards on Administrative Reviews following the full implementation of the Atlas casework database by the end of 2021.

Visa: Applications

Bell Ribeiro-Addy: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what plans her Department has for establishing standards for determining visa applications as complex by caseworkers.

Kevin Foster: Visa applications are considered to be complex when an Entry Clearance Officer or caseworker determines that additional information is required in order for a decision to be made.There are no set standards for processing non-straightforward (identified as complex) by the caseworker. However, if an application is complex and expected to take longer than the standard processing timescale, UKVI will write to the customer within the standard processing time and explain what will happen next.The published information on processing times for visa applications is published as part of the Migration Transparency data, available at https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/migration-transparency-data#uk-visas-and-immigration

Human Trafficking: Prisoners

Ms Lyn Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what information her Department holds on the number of people with a past or present National Referral Mechanism referral who are in custody in the UK as at 16 July 2020.

Victoria Atkins: The Single Competent Authority (SCA) operates the National Referral Mechanism (NRM) which is a civil process for the identification and support of victims of modern slavery. The SCA does not hold real time data on the number of individuals referred into the NRM who are in custody at any specific time.

Firearms: Safety

Karin Smyth: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what recent progress she has made on a public consultation on firearms safety.

Kit Malthouse: A public consultation on firearms safety issues will be published later this year. It will seek views on security arrangements for high muzzle-energy rifles and will cover other firearms safety issues that were raised during the passage through Parliament of the Offensive Weapons Act 2019.

Firearms: Licensing

Karin Smyth: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the Answer of 12 February 2020 to Question 12349, when she plans to respond to the consultation entitled, Statutory guidance to police on firearms licensing, which closed in September 2019.

Kit Malthouse: The Government is continuing to consider the 11,000 responses which were received in reply to the public consultation on the introduction of statutory guidance to the police on firearms licensing which closed on 17 September last year.The Government intends to publish its response to the consultation and the statutory guidance in due course.

Firearms: Licensing

Karin Smyth: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the Answer of 12 February 2020 to Question 12350, when she plans to respond to the consultation entitled, Policing and Crime Act: proposals to implement legislation to define antique firearms, which closed in December 2017.

Kit Malthouse: We are carefully considering the consultation responses we received and are engaging further with interested parties on this technical issue. We will publish our conclusions as soon as possible and at the same time we will lay regulations before Parliament to define which firearms can safely be regarded as antique.

Twitter: Hacking

Chi Onwurah: To ask the Secretary of State for Home Department, what recourse there is for UK citizens who have lost money through the hack of high profile Twitter accounts on 15 July 2020.

James Brokenshire: Victims in England, Wales and Northern Ireland are encouraged to report these crimes directly to Action Fraud, the centralised reporting centre for fraud and cybercrime. Those in Scotland should report directly to Police Scotland, via the 101 service.

Cabinet Office

Brain: Injuries

Chris Bryant: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what recent discussions he has had with Cabinet colleagues on acquired brain injury.

Michael Gove: I can assure the Hon Member that all colleagues across government recognise the importance of coordinating support for people with acquired brain injury, as I highlighted to him in our meeting of 1 July. The Hon Member is a powerful champion of this significant cause on which government is determined to make progress.In line with the practice of successive governments, I am not able to disclose details of internal discussions, but I will update the Hon Member on the government’s work on this issue in due course.

Government Departments: Reviews

John McDonnell: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, if he will publish the results of the zero based review taking place in different business units in his Department; and whether the Government plans to undertake those reviews in each Department.

Julia Lopez: As has been the case under successive administrations, ministers routinely review their departments to ensure they are delivering the Government’s agenda in the most effective and efficient way. Significant changes are communicated to the House in the usual way.

Treasury

Government Departments: Procurement

Ruth Cadbury: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what plans he has to update his Department's Green Book to include a social value case.

Steve Barclay: The Government is currently reviewing the Green Book - the government’s core guidance on how to develop and appraise schemes against government objectives – to ensure it is consistent with the Government’s ambition to level-up opportunity across the United Kingdom.The economic case within the Green Book is concerned with social value. It requires all impacts – social, environmental, economic, financial etc. – to be assessed relative to what would have taken place in absence of intervention, referred to in the Green Book as business as usual. The relevant costs and benefits are those for UK society overall, not just to the public sector or originating institution.As part of the review, the Chancellor set out at the Budget earlier this year that the government is keen to ensure that government spending is not just narrowly focused on where it will bring the highest immediate return, but also on where it may unlock the productive potential of an area and achieve broader long-term benefits.The review is looking to enhance the strategic development and assessment of projects, consider how to assess and present local impacts, and looking to develop new analytical methods for place-based interventions.An updated Green Book will be published later in the year, and early findings will inform the Spending Review in Autumn.

Employment: Disability

Dr Lisa Cameron: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of providing a jobs strategy for disabled people as part of the Government’s covid-19 recovery strategy.

Steve Barclay: On 8 July 2020, the Chancellor announced the Plan for Jobs, a package of measures which will help people find work by significantly increasing help offered through Jobcentres and providing individualised advice through the National Careers Service. The Chancellor also announced the Kickstart Scheme, a £2bn fund to create hundreds of thousands of new, fully subsidised jobs for young people. People with disabilities are able to access all of the above measures, in addition to the existing disability employment and support offer.The government’s manifesto committed to reducing the disability employment gap and the government is very aware that people with disabilities face extra barriers in both recruitment and retention.On recruitment, people with disabilities who have lost their job and require more intensive employment support have access to both the Work and Health Programme and Intensive Personalised Employment Support. In addition, the Disability Confident scheme provides employers with the knowledge, skills and confidence they need to attract, recruit, retain and develop people with disabilities in the workplace.On retention, the Access to Work programme offers people with disabilities practical in-work support above the level of statutory reasonable adjustments, including a discretionary grant of up to £60,700 per year. The government will continue to look at ways of supporting people with health conditions to stay in work. The government plans to publish a response to the Health is Everyone’s Business consultation by the end of the year. The consultation set out proposals to assist all employers to take early and supportive action to help staff who are managing health conditions in work.

Working Tax Credit

Neil Gray: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment his Department has made of the potential merits of removing the minimum hours requirements for working tax credits.

Steve Barclay: In response to the Covid-19 crisis, HMRC has changed the Working Tax Credit regulations so that any interruption or lowering of hours worked is treated as temporary for the duration of the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme. This allows claimants to remain on Working Tax Credit when entitlement would otherwise have ended.This is in addition to a wider package of welfare measures to support families including a £20 per week increase to the basic element of Working Tax Credit and the Universal Credit standard allowance.

Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport

Telecommunications: Huawei

Chi Onwurah: To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what discussions he has had with local authorities on ways to speed up the replacement of Huawei equipment in mobile towers and other telecoms premises.

Matt Warman: On 14 July the Government announced that Huawei equipment will be removed from the UK’s 5G networks by the end of 2027 following the introduction of further US sanctions against Huawei in May 2020. The process by which mobile operators comply with the Government’s decision on Huawei will be subject to decisions for which the operators themselves are responsible.The Government engages regularly with local authorities across the United Kingdom, and advises on matters of network deployment. However, it is ultimately the operator’s commercial decision as to what supplier they choose and equipment they deploy.

Telecommunications

Chi Onwurah: To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, with reference to the oral statement of 14 July 2020, Official Report, column 1376, whether telecoms operators will be able to buy as much equipment as they chose from Huawei until the end of 2020 and then roll-out that equipment into their network at any time up until the end of 2027.

Matt Warman: As the Secretary of State said in his oral statement on Tuesday, the National Cyber Security Centre has advised operators to stop buying affected Huawei 5G equipment. It is for the operators to make the commercial decisions to comply with this advice.The Secretary of State also made clear in his statement that the Government will be requiring operators to remove Huawei equipment from their 5G networks by the end of 2027. There is little commercial incentive for the operators to buy more, new, Huawei kit only to have to remove it by 2027. The purpose of the timeframe, between now and December 2020, is to provide industry with time to prepare for removal and, if necessary, purchase non-affected kit where this is crucial to ensure repairs and maintenance can continue so services are not impacted.

Bowling: Coronavirus

Seema Malhotra: To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what plans he has to publish guidance to allow bowling alleys to safely reopen.

Carolyn Harris: To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what estimate he has made of the economic cost of maintaining the closure of bowling alleys as a result of the covid-19 outbreak.

Nigel Huddleston: Bowling alleys will be able to reopen from 1 August provided they have written a COVID-19 risk assessment.We have worked closely with stakeholders to develop further Covid-19 Secure reopening guidance for venues such as bowling alleys. Specific guidance on bowling alleys has been published within UKHospitality’s ‘COVID-19 Secure Guidelines for Hospitality Businesses.’ We continue to meet regularly with the wider sector through the Cultural Renewal Taskforce’s Sport and Visitor Economy working groups.As with all aspects of the Government’s response to Covid-19, our decisions have been and will continue to be based on scientific evidence and public health assessments.To support businesses - including bowling alleys - through Covid-19, the Government has introduced a comprehensive support package, including business rates relief for eligible leisure businesses and the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme.

Inland Waterways: Coronavirus

Cat Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what discussions he has had with Cabinet colleagues on a support package for (a) employers and (b) crew in the inland waterways sector who are affected by the decline in tourism revenue as a result of the covid-19 outbreak.

Cat Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what steps he is taking in each region of (a) England and (b) Wales to help protect employment in the inland waterways sector of the tourism industry from the effect of the covid-19 outbreak.

Nigel Huddleston: We recognise that waterways businesses have been severely impacted by the current situation. My Department will continue to work closely with the Department for Food, Environment and Rural Affairs (DEFRA) to assess the impact on tourism businesses on inland waterways following Covid-19.The Government has provided wide-ranging financial support across the whole economy, particularly focussing on small and medium-sized businesses. These include several loan schemes, such as the 100% Government-guaranteed Bounce Back Loan; support for self-employed people; the Local Authority Discretionary Grant Fund to accommodate small businesses previously outside the scope of the business grant funds scheme; a £10 million tourism ‘kick-start’ package to help small businesses in our tourist destinations, along with a reduced 5% VAT rate for many tourism and hospitality activities for six months.Through the Cultural Renewal Taskforce and its working groups, we have developed Covid-19 Secure guidance which will help heritage and tourism businesses reopen safely for both visitors and workers. Further significant easing of Covid-19 restrictions from 4 July should now allow many waterways businesses to reopen to take advantage of coming summer demand.

Businesses: Coronavirus

Cat Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, if he will make an assessment of the effect of recent Government policy statements on China on the ability of businesses in the UK that rely on tourism from China to recover from the economic effect of covid-19.

Nigel Huddleston: The Government welcomes the positive impact of international tourism, including from China, on the UK economy. We look forward to welcoming Chinese visitors back to all parts of the UK as soon as practicably possible. We will continue to support the recovery of the tourism and hospitality sectors, as well as the countryside, culture and heritage assets which we know are so greatly appreciated by visitors both from China and from around the world.

Internet: Safety

Alexander Stafford: To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, when he plans to publish the final Government response to the consultation of Online Harms White Paper that closed in July 2019.

Caroline Dinenage: The Government is firmly committed to making the UK the safest place to be online, and we are working at pace on our proposals. We will publish a full government response later this year.

Performing Arts

Nickie Aiken: To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, whether his Department plans to support and ratify the Beijing Treaty on Audio-Visual Performances to extend the economic and moral rights of actors and performers in audio-visual performances including films, videos and television programmes.

Caroline Dinenage: The UK fully supports the Beijing Treaty on Audio-Visual Performances (BTAP) and signed it on 11 June 2013. The UK has now left the EU, and the Government will consider when and how to ratify and implement BTAP as part of its future policy agenda. Any future changes to UK legislation in this area will need to be subject to public consultation and impact assessment.

Electronic Commerce: EU Law

Neil Coyle: To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what plans the Government has to replace the EU eCommerce Directive 2000/31/EC with UK law after the transition period.

Caroline Dinenage: At the end of the transition period, the EU eCommerce Directive will no longer apply to the UK. Many of its provisions have been implemented into UK domestic law. The government is making changes to ensure that, from 1 January 2021, online service providers based in the European Economic Area will be required to abide by UK legislation when providing services to UK consumers.

Business: Misrepresentation

Chi Onwurah: To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, with reference to the Which report entitled, Firms able to boost Trustpilot ratings using dubious tactics, published 10 July 2020, what assessment he has made of the extent of the organised undermining of Trustpilot assessments of businesses online; and what steps he is taking to improve trust in the digital economy.

Caroline Dinenage: The Government is ensuring that our approach to governing digital technologies is pro-competitive, pro-innovation and proportionate. This will build confidence and clarity for businesses and users, boost investment, and reinforce the UK’s position as a global leader in stable, innovation-friendly regulation. In May 2020 the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) opened an investigation into several major websites that display online reviews. The CMA will investigate whether these websites are taking sufficient measures to protect consumers from fake and misleading reviews. The Consumer Protection from Unfair Trading Regulations 2008 (CPRs) prohibit businesses from engaging in misleading and deceptive commercial practices against consumers to the extent that they are likely to distort the economic behaviour of the ‎average consumer. This includes businesses using dubious tactics to boost their Trustpilot review scores. A breach of the CPRs carry criminal penalties such as unlimited fine or up to 2 years in prison and are enforced by local authority Trading Standards officers.

Telecommunications

Chi Onwurah: To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, pursuant to the Answer of 14 July 2020 to Question 71762, if he will publish further details on the steps taken on the Government’s supply chain diversification strategy in telecoms supply.

Matt Warman: Work to diversify the telecoms supply chain and develop alternative suppliers remains an absolute priority for the Government. We are continuing to work at pace to develop and take forward our diversification strategy and we will set out further detail later in the autumn, in line with the introduction of the Telecoms Security Bill.